Ethereum Price Could Double In Next Two Weeks says Analyst as ETH Whales Accumulate

Surging institutional interest and on-chain data indicate that Ethereum’s short-term price surge could be far from over, as ETH whales pull their holdings off central exchanges some analysts are expecting the ETH price to double in the next two weeks.

Ethereum (ETH) set a new all-time high of $1,467.78 yesterday, its price surging as institutional investors turn bullish on the most dominant smart contract platform and most utilized blockchain for decentralized apps (Dapps) and decentralized finance (DeFi).

The world's second-largest cryptocurrency, with a market cap of $160 billion, has risen on 90% a year-to-date basis, outpacing bitcoin's 10% rise.

According to Defi Pulse, there is currently over $25 Billion total value locked in decentralized finance. Ethereum is the most dominant smart contract platform as the most popular blockchain application for developers and projects on which to build and launch Dapps.

In terms of further price gains for Ether—the majority of Defi protocols and the Ethereum network could be considered intrinsically linked, and the new form of digital finance has continued to boom in 2021, and Ether’s price is expected to boom in correlation.

In a note to Blockchain.News on Ethereum’s correlation to DeFi, Paolo Ardoino, CTO at Bitfinex wrote:

"The Ethereum price has pierced another all-time high. The potential of ether is becoming more and more apparent as it demonstrates a formidable capacity to support many projects. Ethereum is a key platform for building blockchain projects and is an integral part of launching decentralized applications. With DeFi protocols exceeding $19B in TVL and showing no signs of decelerating, we may see the price of ether grow alongside its use."

Exchange Withdrawals point to ETH Whale Accumulation

As the below chart shows, centralized exchanges reached their lowest Ether reserve levels—since November 2018—last week on Jan.23

ETH On Centralized Exchanges. Source:Cryptoquant.com

Increasing withdrawals from exchanges are generally related to periods of whale accumulation. Additionally, the increased accumulation by investors with deep pockets may have put upward pressure on ether’s price and continue to do so in the short-term.

This Ether withdrawal data also coincides with the DeFi’s total value locked (TVL) reaching a $26 billion all-time high and may signals that investors are choosing to take advantage of the lucrative yield opportunities in decentralized exchanges.

ETH's Institutional Investment Vehicle

Additionally, a sign that Ethereum is making headway and entering mainstream adoption is that the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), the world’s largest derivatives platform, has announced that it is planning on launching ETH futures by February 8. Once it gains the regulatory approval of the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), traders will also have ETH futures as an option, added on to the current Bitcoin futures available.

This will enable investors to trade Ethereum contracts without actually holding the underlying asset, and investors can gain a profit by betting on the future price of Ether (ETH).

Ethereum Price to Double

Popular cryptocurrency analyst, Lark Davis, expects Ethereum to double in the next two weeks just "like bitcoin did." As Ethereum left centralized exchanges, Davis tweeted on Jan. 25:

“Ethereum balance on exchanges has reached a 15 month low, and withdrawals are not slowing down. Price probably going to double in the next two weeks like Bitcoin did.”

Ethereum has gained 1,200% in value since the March 2020 coronavirus-induced market crash, compared with a 700% increase in the value of bitcoin. In 2020, the Ethereum network saw over $1 trillion worth of transactions on its blockchain - exceeding the transaction volumes of payment platforms such as PayPal.

For now, the Ethereum bull run looks set to continue and ETH is currently trading at $1,324.75 down over 6% in the last 24 hours.