Key Points
The anticipated approval of spot Ethereum ETFs in the United States has led to a significant surge in the price of Ether (ETH).
In the past two days, the value of ETH has increased by over 26%, reaching levels not seen since mid-March.
Factors Driving Ether’s Uptrend
After peaking at $3,800, ETH’s price has seen a minor pullback.
However, the likelihood of Ethereum ETF approval, along with fundamental factors and on-chain metrics, indicate that the altcoin’s uptrend is still in place.
A notable factor contributing to Ether’s rise is the increase in open long ETH positions in the futures market.
CryptoQuant, an on-chain market intelligence firm, reported that Ethereum’s total open interest in the derivatives market rose from 2.8 to 3.2 million ETH within a few hours on May 20.
This increase came after rumors spread about the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) possibly approving spot Ethereum ETFs.
Since January 2023, this is the highest open interest recorded.
CryptoQuant analysts noted that traders in the perpetual futures market have aggressively opened long positions in Ethereum, expecting higher prices following the potential ETF approval.
In U.S. dollar terms, ETH open interest has reached a record-high of $14.68 billion, indicating a strong underlying trend and continued investor confidence in Ethereum.
The potential approval of a spot Ethereum ETF has led to discussions among analysts about its possible implications for Ethereum’s price.
CryptoQuant analysts observed that there are now more buy ETH orders in the perpetual futures market compared to other types of orders, implying upward pressure on prices.
Additional data from CryptoQuant also showed that traders now prefer to have more exposure to Ethereum than to Bitcoin.
This is evident in the Ethereum-Bitcoin Open Interest ratio, which jumped from 0.54 to 0.67 on May 20, indicating that Ether’s total open interest is 67% of Bitcoin’s.
Moreover, data from TradingView reveals that the ETH/BTC trading pair increased by 19.6% from a low of $0.04572 on May 20 to a two-month high of $0.06471 on May 21, suggesting Ether’s price is strengthening against BTC.
The robustness of the ETH/BTC uptrend is further supported by the relative strength index position at 68, suggesting Ethereum’s uptrend is intact.
CryptoQuant data also reveals increased demand for ETH, particularly from Permanent Holders, following the ETF approval rumors.
Permanent Holders are defined as addresses that accumulate ETH and never sell.
On May 20, these holders purchased over 100,000 ETH, the highest daily level since September 2023.
Analyst Ali Martinez concurred with these observations, sharing a chart from Santiment showing increased accumulation by ETH whales on May 20.
Market intelligence firm Santiment also noted that while crowd sentiment toward Bitcoin and Solana remains bearish, the hype around Ethereum has reached its highest level since September 2023.
According to Alternative.me data, the Crypto Fear and Greed Index has risen to the “extreme greed” zone at 76, up from “greed” at 64 last week.
This suggests that retail investors are becoming increasingly positive about cryptocurrencies, and if the SEC approves spot Ethereum EFTs this month, the price of ETH is expected to continue its uptrend.