A growing divide is observed in the Ethereum market between large holders and retail investors. While the latter sell off their assets, whales are accumulating Ethereum, signaling a potential revival of confidence in the long-term prospects of the network.
Large Accumulations of Ethereum
According to analytics firm Santiment, addresses holding between 1,000 and 100,000 ETH, referred to as whales, have accumulated approximately 1.49 million ETH (worth $3.79 billion) over the past month. This equates to a 3.72% increase in their total holdings, amounting to 41.61 million ETH, or nearly 27% of Ethereum's circulating supply.
Active DeFi Engagement
Whales are not just hoarding ETH but actively engaging in the DeFi ecosystem. For instance, transactions through the Ethereum Name Service (ENS) from whale wallets surged 313.5% in mid-June. Activity in lending protocols also rose by 203.8%, indicating significant growth across Layer-2 solutions like Arbitrum and Optimism.
Growth in Institutional Inflows
Ethereum's rising appeal among institutional investors is evident from recent ETF market trends. U.S.-based Ethereum spot ETFs recently completed a 19-day streak of inflows, attracting $1.37 billion in capital. Despite a minor $2.1 million outflow, this reflects substantial confidence from institutions.
The behavioral divergence between retail and institutional investors could have significant implications for Ethereum's price trajectory. Despite short-term volatility, the accumulation by whales and positive signals from institutions may indicate favorable changes for the second-largest cryptocurrency.
