Ether’s Surge to $2,850 Short-Lived as Crypto Markets Face Broader Pullback
Ethereum’s ether (ETH) made a notable push to $2,850 on Monday, sparking optimism among traders, but the rally quickly lost steam as broader market weakness dragged prices lower. Bitcoin (BTC) also slipped, falling below $96,000 amid cautious sentiment.
ETH jumped 7% in a low-volume session, briefly outperforming other major cryptocurrencies, before retreating to $2,730. Meanwhile, BTC declined from just over $97,000 to $95,500, with the CoinDesk 20 Index and BTC both losing about 2% on the day. Despite the pullback, ether held onto a modest 2% gain over 24 hours.
This pattern of short-lived ether rallies has been observed before. In late January and early February, ETH surged 10% to $3,400, only to crash 35% over a low-volume weekend as Bitcoin dropped 13%. Traders are wary of a similar scenario playing out again.
The rally came amid heightened volatility in the memecoin sector. Tokens like LIBRA, which was briefly promoted by Argentina’s President Javier Milei before collapsing, and BNB Chain’s BROCCOLI, inspired by Binance founder Changpeng Zhao’s pet, have drawn liquidity away from other assets.
According to Aran Hawker, CEO of CoinPanel, ether’s price action is more of a technical adjustment than a sign of market leadership.
“ETH isn’t leading a new trend—it’s just playing catch-up,” Hawker told CoinDesk. “Some traders rotated from Solana back into ETH, but unless this move holds, it could quickly reverse.”
Meanwhile, LMAX Group strategist Joel Kruger suggested that ether could finally be stabilizing against bitcoin after years of underperformance.
“There are signs that ETH may be forming a long-term bottom versus BTC,” Kruger wrote in a market note. “A breakout above key levels could confirm a reversal.”
Market data from CoinGlass showed that trader interest in ether surged on Monday. Open interest in ETH futures rose 12% to 9.27 million contracts (worth approximately $2.6 billion), while BTC futures open interest increased by just 1%.
With traders looking for stronger catalysts, ETH’s breakout remains uncertain—whether it can sustain upward momentum or if another sell-off is imminent remains to be seen.
