Ethereum Price Drop Attributed to MEV Manipulation: Report

ethereum (eth) faced a drop of almost 5% in one hour this Thursday, despite the anticipation surrounding the approval of spot ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the US. User identified as ai_9684xtpa x.com/ai_9684xtpa/status/1793637300980850745″ rel=”noopener nofollow noreferrer”>he pointed that this was probably a market manipulation move by the trading company Symbolic Capital Partners.

“The agency sold 6,968 eth in one minute at 8:56 p.m., worth $27.38 million, with an average sale price of $3,930; one transaction sold 3,497 eth on the chain at a time, and the cost of the bribe reached 90 eth,” ai_9684xtpa explained.

These transactions are known as MEV, short for “maximum extractable value,” which involves using on-chain resources to make a profit. The 90 eth payout suggests a rush to sell the position at a higher price to crash it, possibly to buy it back at a lower price.

Since the crash, ethereum has swung in and out of the $3,800 price level and is priced at $3,803.37 at the time of writing, nearly 22% away from its previous all-time high.

“It's happening”

As shared by Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart, an approval of ethereum spot ETFs will occur this Thursday. Despite the low odds given to this scenario as of last Monday, Seyffart and fellow Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas increased the possibilities to 75% after the SEC began contacting issuers.

Since then, several asset management companies amendments tabled to its 19b-4 filings, and VanEck's ethereum spot ETF even appeared on the list on DTCC under the symbol $ETHV. The first final deadline is today as the US regulator must decide on VanEck's application.

Additionally, according to Balchunas, the SEC's decision on ethereum spot ETFs could come as early as 4 pm (EST). Although a positive result is expected, it does not mean immediate permission to trade.