Ethereum (ETH) is up around 5% over the past week against Bitcoin (BTC) as the community awaits the highly anticipated Shappella update.
Over the last 24 hours, ETH increased 2.11% against BTC, reaching up to 0.067965 on Binance before pulling back to 0.067965 at the time of writing.
The improved performance has seen ETH dominance rise to 19.84% for the first time since March 12, according to CryptoSlate data.
ETH USD value rises to 8-month high
When the value of ETH is denominated in US dollars, it surpassed $1,900 for the first time since May 2022.
However, the asset has retraced to $1894 at press time, according to CryptoSlate data.
The price movement continues its positive performance for 2023. ETH has shot up 7.1% in the last seven days and is up 22% over the last month. In the year-to-date metric, ETH is up roughly 60%.
Market sentiments around Shappella improvement
With the Shappella update confirmed for April 12, market sentiment around ETH has turned largely positive, with some analysts believing the move would increase selling pressure on the cryptocurrency.
The Shappella upgrade would allow Ethereum participants to withdraw their staked tokens from the blockchain network.
Blockchain analytics company Nansen reported that the selling pressure on ETH from the removal could range from $1.9 billion to $4.6 billion. According to the firm, this could damage the asset due to the relatively poor liquidity of its spot markets.
However, Nansen added that the positive effects of the Shanghai upgrade on ETH would likely counter the initial selling pressure.
Meanwhile, another blockchain analytics firm Santiment he pointed that the supply of ETH on the exchange is currently at its lowest point – 10.31%. The firm noted that investors are favoring self-custody services for their assets.
Market analysts on Twitter have interpreted this to mean that holders strongly believe in ETH’s potential as a store of value. Since ETH completed the merger event in 2022, the asset has turned deflationary and the volume held by long-term investors has increased.
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