Since the pandemic, whenever Ethereum reached local tops, we’ve seen retail trading frequency spike hard. That pattern was loud and clear during the 2021 bull run — high retail activity usually came right around price peaks.
But this cycle?
A different story. While Bitcoin surged from 16K to over 111K, Ethereum hasn’t delivered that classic altcoin outperformance. There was a flicker of retail interest around December 2024 (see the green dots), but just as it was picking up, Trump’s tariff drama hit the markets.
Risk appetite dropped, and retail trading frequency on Ethereum followed.
Conclusion:
Retail hasn’t entered the arena yet. And when retail is missing, you know what that means — the rally might still be in its early innings. There could be unpriced upside hiding in ETH.
Written by burakkesmeci
