Whales on the Prowl
Recent on-chain data reveals that Ethereum whales are eagerly awaiting a rally and are actively purchasing the cryptocurrency. Over the past week, several major holders have been accumulating Ethereum, taking advantage of high volatility in the market.
Notable Ethereum Whale Activity
On January 5th, the Twitter account "Spot On Chain," which tracks on-chain metrics, reported that a well-known whale known as "0×9314" invested $48 million to acquire 21,192 ETH at an average price of $2,265 per coin. This particular whale initiated their ETH accumulation in January of the previous year and has since acquired nearly 80,000 coins, primarily on decentralized exchanges (DEX) and Binance, with an average price of $1,790.
Remarkably, this whale financed their purchases with loans obtained from DeFi protocols like Aave and Liquidity, resulting in profits exceeding $36.84 million or a 26% return on investment over the year.
Another Twitter account, "LookOnChain," which tracks on-chain activity, identified two additional whales purchasing significant amounts of both BTC and ETH following a recent price dip. Collectively, they acquired over 1,300 ETH at a price of $2,225 per coin, according to analysts.
Whales Accumulate Ethereum
Provider of on-chain analytics, Santiment, has confirmed that the largest Ethereum holders are rapidly accumulating the cryptocurrency. The company's experts noted that over 56 million ETH is currently held in the top 150 wallets, marking a historical high.
Interestingly, non-exchange whales are accumulating ETH at a rapid pace, while exchange wallets show no significant growth in ETH holdings, as reported by Santiment.
What's in Store for ETH?
The surge in whale activity has given rise to hopes of Ethereum's future growth. Market observers have noted the shifting dynamics of support and resistance for Ethereum, with a spotlight on the SEC's decision regarding spot ETFs for Bitcoin. However, ETH is also set to have its own spot ETF soon, a development that is relatively unknown to many. Some experts believe that Ethereum remains undervalued.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is expected to make a decision on spot ETF applications for Ethereum from Invesco and Galaxy by February 6th.
Chart analysis shows that since the beginning of the year, Ethereum has maintained stability above the $2,150 mark, with current trading hovering near $2,240. Over the past 24 hours, the coin's price has remained relatively stable, with a slight weekly decrease of 2.7%.
Ethereum's Performance
In 2023, Ethereum lagged behind other major altcoins, such as Solana, appreciating by only 90%, while Bitcoin and Solana demonstrated triple-digit growth.
Market analysts continue to maintain positive forecasts for ETH. For instance, asset manager VanEck predicts that by 2030, Ethereum's price could exceed $50,000.