Ethereum Price Skyrockets Past $3,000 as Anticipation Builds for ETF Approval

The price of Ethereum (ETH) soared past $3,000 on Tuesday. This marked the first time either crossed this key psychological level since April 2022. The second-largest crypto by market cap continued its remarkable recent hot streak.

Ether’s price climbed from $2,881 on February 19, surging more than 4% over the last 24 hours. It hit an intraday high of $3,000.97, according to pricing data from CoinMarketCap. This represented Ether’s stellar 74% gain over the past 12 months.

The sudden price surge for the popular altcoin comes as the broader crypto market eagerly awaits U.S. regulators’ potential approval of a spot ether exchange-traded fund (ETF). The United States Securities and Exchange Commission could bless an ether ETF product in the coming months. Current odds from the prediction market Polymarket indicate around a 45% probability that a spot Ether ETF will be approved by May 31.

Market anticipation is also building ahead of the scheduled implementation of Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) 4844 through the network’s upcoming Dencun upgrade. This could further boost Ether’s price if successfully implemented.

Major Wall Street wealth management firm Bernstein recently suggested that Ether may be the only cryptocurrency besides Bitcoin to secure approval for a spot ETF product in the United States. A green light would represent a major milestone and open the floodgates for more conservative, institutional investment into the ether market.

Ethereum Surges: $3,500 Resistance Target Amid ETF Speculation

Cryptocurrencies across the board have experienced a stellar performance so far in 2024, with prices of major tokens well above where they ended last year. Ether has surged nearly 30% since the beginning of January, outperforming bitcoin’s 22% year-to-date advance over the same period.

If Ether’s rally continues at its current torrid pace, traders and analysts target $3,500 as the next key resistance level. Bullish sentiment is expected to hold with potential SEC approval for Ether ETF and a broader crypto market uptrend.

“We are very close in this move to levels around $3,150-$3,300,” said Kenny Hearn, chief investment officer at Switzerland-based crypto asset manager SwissOne Capital. “The next level after that would be $3,600, and we think this is quite easily attainable in the next month or so as the altcoins continue to play catch up to Bitcoin’s gains.”

A potential approval of a spot Ether ETF product would significantly boost the token’s mainstream investment appeal among institutions. This mirrors the wave of capital flowing into the newly launched Bitcoin ETF products over recent months.

Meanwhile, Bloomberg’s senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas recently forecasted a 70% chance of a spot Ether ETF ultimately receiving approval. He suggests a positive overall outlook despite regulatory delays from the SEC in making a decision.

Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said he expects a 70% chance of an Ethereum spot ETF being approved in May. The SEC needs to make approval decisions on multiple Ethereum spot ETF applications by the end of May, including VanEck, Ark 21Shares and Hashdex. Digital asset lawyer…

— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) January 11, 2024

Data from crypto data analytics firm CoinGlass shows the increasing open interest (OI) in the ether futures market racing to a record $10.19 billion. This validates and confirms the current volatility in ETH’s price amid the growing speculation.

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Many market participants expect the fresh round of bullish price action to continue building on Ether’s latest achievements. SEC’s potential approval of a spot Ether ETF has everyone watching closely for its potential upside.