Ethereum is in the news again because its price is getting close to $3,500 for the first time since early 2024. World Liberty Financial, a Trump-affiliated crypto company, just bought $5 million worth of crypto, which is what caused the sudden rise. Now, investors and analysts are paying attention.
Lookonchain, an on-chain analytics platform, says that the fund bought 1,531 ETH on July 16 for an average price of $3,266 per coin. This strategic purchase is being seen as a sign that more institutions are interested in Ethereum, especially since U.S. political and financial players are starting to speak out more about crypto, as per a report by The Street.
Who’s buying and selling ETH right now?
But that’s not the only thing that happens on the blockchain. A lot of so-called “whales,” which are big individual or institutional holders, seem to be buying ETH, but some are selling it. One big example is that Trend Research, an investment firm, sold 79,470 ETH for about $250 million.
Even though they sold some, the company still has more than 105,000 ETH in reserve. Another big player, known only by the pseudonymous wallet 0xd8d0, sold almost 99,000 ETH, which is about $278 million, in the last few days.
And it’s not just investors who are taking advantage of the recent rise in prices.
What role are hackers playing in this rally?
A hacker who stole almost $50 million from the Hong Kong-based Infini platform in February seems to have used the price spike as a chance to move and clean some of the stolen ETH.
On July 17, PeckShieldAlert, a group that keeps an eye on blockchain activity, said that the hacker sent about 4,770 ETH to two different addresses. One address used Tornado Cash, a crypto mixer that hides transactions, to send 3,000 ETH. The other 1,770 ETH were traded for about $5.9 million in DAI, a stablecoin that is pegged to the dollar.
This rise in activity is part of a larger trend of Ethereum prices going up. In just the last week, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap has gone up more than 20%. Tom Lee, co-founder of Fundstrat and chairman of Bitmine Immersion Technologies, is one analyst who has said that the ongoing boom in stablecoins and tokenization are two of the main reasons for the rally.
Could Ethereum really hit $10,000?
Lee even said that Ethereum could grow a lot more and might even reach $10,000, which used to seem impossible but now seems a little more likely because of the renewed interest.
Still, history has shown that crypto rallies can be unpredictable, and big moves by whales, whether they are buying or selling, tend to make prices go up and down.
Ethereum’s current path is anything but boring. Political players are now actively supporting crypto projects, big companies are changing their ETH positions, and even criminals are coming back to move stolen funds.
It is still unclear if this is a short-term spike or the start of a new bull run. But right now, everyone is watching Ethereum and the $3,500 line it is quickly getting closer to.
Also read: Ripple’s RLUSD Stablecoin Myths Debunked
