Ether’s Surge to $2,850 Fizzles as Crypto Market Slides, Bitcoin Falls Below $96K

Ethereum’s ether (ETH) briefly climbed to $2,850 on Monday, showing signs of strength before reversing gains as the broader crypto market turned lower. The move, initially viewed as a bullish breakout, quickly faded as selling pressure took over.

ETH had outpaced other major cryptocurrencies earlier in the session, gaining as much as 7%, while bitcoin (BTC) slipped from just above $97,000 to $95,500. By midday, ether had retreated to $2,730, holding onto a 2% gain, while BTC and the broader CoinDesk 20 Index fell by around 2%.

This price pattern is not unfamiliar. In late January and early February, ether rallied 10% to $3,400, only to see a sharp reversal that sent BTC down 13% and ETH crashing 35% to nearly $2,000.

Monday’s price action came as traders kept an eye on the impact of ongoing memecoin speculation. Controversial tokens like LIBRA, tied to Argentine politics, and BROCCOLI, a BNB Chain-based coin inspired by former Binance CEO CZ’s dog, have dominated social media chatter, creating a volatile trading environment.

Aran Hawker, CEO of CoinPanel, cautioned that ether’s price action was likely a temporary adjustment rather than a sign of true market leadership.

“ETH’s rise isn’t a breakout—it’s just playing catch-up to where it should be,” Hawker said in a message to CoinDesk. “Traders have likely been rotating funds from Solana into ETH, but unless we see a sustained trend shift, these gains could disappear with the next major move in the market.”

Still, some analysts see a potential turning point. LMAX Group strategist Joel Kruger pointed out that ETH may finally be nearing the end of its years-long decline against bitcoin.

“There are early signs that ETH could be bottoming out against BTC after a prolonged downtrend since 2021,” Kruger wrote in a Monday market note. “If it breaks key resistance levels, we could see a stronger rebound.”

Data from CoinGlass suggests growing interest in ether relative to bitcoin, with ETH futures open interest jumping 12% in the past 24 hours to 9.27 million contracts, worth nearly $2.6 billion. Meanwhile, BTC futures open interest barely moved, rising just 1%.

With macroeconomic events and regulatory discussions looming, traders remain on edge, waiting to see whether ether can sustain its strength or if this rally will once again fade into broader market weakness.