The price of ethereum (eth) approached $3,000 on February 19 amid anticipation over events expected to occur in the coming months.
At 8:35 pm UTC, eth was priced at <span data-converter-target="price" data-coin-id="279" data-price-target="price" data-price-btc=”0.05654490399025878″ data-prev-price=”2932.3893741296492″>$2,937 with a market capitalization of $352.96 billion. That change represents 4.12% growth in 24 hours, significantly larger than bitcoin's 0.4% gains over the same period and also larger than the overall crypto market's 1.2% gains.
Lido Staked Ether (STETH) posted comparable gains of 3.88% in 24 hours. ethereum 2.0 staking tokens as a category posted gains of 5.4%. eth-2-0-staking”>according CoinGecko data.
ethereum was responsible for a relatively small portion of the 24-hour settlements. The asset accounted for $35.48 million of liquidations, including $8.43 million in long liquidations and $27.05 million in short liquidations.
The growth may be due to the anticipation of ETF and the improvement of Dencun
ethereum's latest gains may be related to the possibility of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approving a spot ethereum exchange-traded fund (ETF).
Although there were no significant regulatory developments surrounding ethereum spot ETFs today, a relevant report from brokerage firm Bernstein received wide coverage. The company's analysts predicted a 50% chance of an ethereum spot ETF being approved in May and an almost certain chance of such a fund being approved within a year. Combined with other similar predictions in recent months, this report may have affected investor confidence and market activity.
Some backlash has also emerged around the prospects for ethereum ETFs. Thomas Fahrer, co-founder of Apollo suggested that Coinbase's leading role as an ETF custodian could compromise ethereum's proof-of-stake model by allowing the company to “control the entire network.”
Dune Analytics Data suggests that Coinbase is currently responsible for about 15% of all eth staking, while another staking platform, Lido, is responsible for over 31%. Because it is unknown how many cryptocurrencies could be held in eth spot ETFs, it is unclear whether Coinbase could gain dominance by holding funds on behalf of those ETFs. Additionally, it is unclear whether the SEC will allow eth staking in ethereum spot ETFs, although some applicants intend to do so.
In addition to those ETF prospects, there is also significant anticipation surrounding ethereum's Dencun upgrade, which will take place on March 13. That update will notably include proto-danksharding, a feature that is expected to improve eth's transaction costs and scalability.
ethereum Market Data
At the time of publication 10:39 pm UTC February 19, 2024ethereum is ranked number 2 by market capitalization and the price is above 2.69% during the last 24 hours. ethereum has a market capitalization of $356.82 billion with a trading volume of 24 hours $15.44 billion. More information about ethereum ›
