News

On May 16, 2025, 15:12 PM(UTC). According to Binance Market Data, Ethereum has crossed the 2,600 USDT benchmark and is now trading at 2,601.98999 USDT, with a narrowed 3.47% increase in 24 hours.

According to Cointelegraph, Ethereum Merge architect Justin Drake has expressed concerns about the relative security of Bitcoin compared to Ethereum. Drake, who played a pivotal role in Ethereum's transition to a proof-of-stake (PoS) system, suggested that launching a 51% attack on Bitcoin would be more cost-effective than on Ethereum. He estimated that such an attack on Bitcoin could cost around $10 billion. This perspective aligns with a previous statement by Grant Hummer, co-founder of Etherealize, who claimed that Bitcoin's security budget is insufficient. Hummer estimated that a successful 51% attack on Bitcoin could cost $8 billion, potentially decreasing to $2 billion in the future. A 51% attack occurs when an entity gains control over more than half of a blockchain network's mining or staking power, allowing them to manipulate the network. Drake elaborated on the challenges of executing a 51% attack on Ethereum, noting that achieving 100% control would require more than half of the staked Ether. At the time of his comments, there were over 34 million staked Ether, valued at nearly $89.6 billion. This means that acquiring the necessary stake would cost approximately $44.8 billion. Given Ethereum's market cap of $316 billion and a 24-hour trading volume of $25 billion, the financial requirements for such an attack are substantial. Moreover, any attempt to accumulate this amount of Ether would likely drive up its price, further increasing the cost of the attack. Matan Sitbon, CEO of Lightblocks, highlighted Ethereum's additional security measures, emphasizing the role of the community's social and economic coordination mechanisms. Drake also pointed out that Ethereum's PoS system allows the community to identify and penalize attackers through social consensus, a feature not available in Bitcoin's proof-of-work (PoW) system. This social layer, comprising the network's human participants, can decide on software changes to counteract attacks. Pavel Yashin from P2P.org mentioned that if centralization is detected, the community could implement a new fork, rendering the compromised chain obsolete. Hassan Khan, CEO of Ordeez, added that while a 51% attack is theoretically possible, practical barriers make it highly improbable for both Bitcoin and Ethereum. He noted that Bitcoin's PoW system requires significant computing power and energy, while Ethereum's PoS introduces economic and governance challenges that deter such attacks.

According to Odaily, CF Benchmarks CEO Sui Chung has attributed the recent rise in Ethereum's price primarily to short covering rather than new bullish investments. He highlighted that the CME Ethereum futures premium remains low, and there has been no significant capital inflow into U.S.-listed spot Ethereum ETFs. This suggests that the current price increase is largely due to traders closing short positions rather than active positioning by institutional investors.

According to Foresight News, monitoring by Lookonchain reveals that Abraxas Capital has been steadily accumulating Ethereum (ETH) since May 7. The firm has withdrawn a total of 278,639 ETH from exchanges at an average price of $2,350 per coin. This acquisition is valued at approximately $655 million. Currently, Abraxas Capital holds an unrealized profit of $77 million from these transactions.

According to BlockBeats, Ethereum has experienced a significant increase in transaction fees, rising by 160% this week. This surge is attributed to a substantial growth in on-chain activity. The heightened demand for transactions on the Ethereum network has led to increased costs, reflecting the network's current usage trends.

According to Binance Market Data, Ethereum (ETH) crossed the 2,600 USDT benchmark and is now trading at 2,600.290039 USDT, with a 1.13% increase in 24 hours.

According to PANews, Starknet, an Ethereum ZK-Rollup scaling solution, has announced its transition into the 'Stage 1' decentralization phase. This development aligns with the framework proposed by Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin in 2022, which signifies the establishment of a security council and a validity proof system, significantly reducing external intervention. Starknet highlighted that this framework serves as a 'gold standard on-chain tool for analyzing Ethereum scaling solutions.' The transition to this stage was achieved through the creation of a security council and the implementation of mechanisms to prevent censorship. Eli Ben-Sasson, CEO of StarkWare, stated that the next objective is to advance to 'Stage 2,' aiming for complete decentralization where the network is entirely governed by the community. According to L2beat, only three small Layer 2 projects have reached this stage so far.

Top Interest of the WeekLast week, there was significant enthusiasm among investors and traders for Ethereum ($ETH) following the successful rollout of the Pectra upgrade on its network. Over the past week, the price of ETH surged by 16.5%, while Bitcoin (BTC) remained stable in the $102k–$104k range. This substantial influx of capital into ETH was driven by short covering and increased interest from institutional buyers. Given that ETH has lagged behind BTC over the last two years, many short positions have accumulated, and the swift rise in ETH's price compelled those shorting to cover their positions, further elevating the price.World ($WLD), the innovative cryptocurrency initiative led by Sam Altman, has ignited worldwide discussions with its strategy to integrate digital finance and biometric identity via iris scanning. Its recent activities in six major US cities have motivated investors to back this project, anticipating rapid adoption and regulatory compliance in the country.Ether.fi ($ETHFI), a liquid staking and restaking platform on Ethereum, experienced a significant surge as its total value locked reached $6.8 billion. This remarkable growth positioned it as the fourth-biggest player in decentralized finance, following AAVE, Lido, and EigenLayer. Consequently, the network has seen an increase in fees, generating $3.15 million last week, compared to $2.65 million the previous week. Ether.fi is utilizing these earnings to repurchase its tokens, a strategy aimed at bolstering token value.Overall Market Source: TradingViewThe above chart is the ETH/BTC price in the daily candle chart at a regular scale.In our analysis from last week, we noted that market sentiment was significantly influenced by tariff-related headlines, while robust demand for ETH bolstered its bullish momentum. We expected a notable recovery in the ETH/BTC price following a substantial rally in ETH. On May 12, the US and China issued a joint statement agreeing to significantly reduce tariffs on each other's goods for an initial 90-day period after their meeting in Geneva, Switzerland. This unexpected development has eased a severe trade conflict and positively impacted global markets, generating strong bullish sentiment for risk assets and restoring the US stock market to levels seen before April 2, when President Trump enacted a minimum 10% tariff on all US imports. Additionally, the safe haven asset, Gold, experienced a significant sell-off from its peak, trading below $3,200 per ounce this week.Bitcoin (BTC) demonstrated its responsiveness to market risk by leading the US stock market over the weekend, maintaining a strong position above the $100k mark. However, after the US stock market opened on Monday, we observed some profit-taking on BTC as investors shifted their funds to other altcoins. We also noticed a decline in BTC's dominance. The primary factor behind this drop in BTC dominance is the significant price increase of Ethereum (ETH), which once surged to $2,738 on Tuesday, marking a 97% rise from its low of $1,385 on April 9. This swift increase was fueled by FOMO among investors and the covering of short positions. Additionally, the ETH/BTC trading pair exhibited a pronounced upward trend on the daily chart.Our desk expects the upward trend in ETH/BTC to persist over the coming weeks, albeit with a gentler price movement, eventually approaching the red zone indicated on the chart. The RSI indicator points to an overbought condition for ETH/BTC, leading us to predict a period of price consolidation at the current level in the next few days, followed by a gradual increase.Over the next two months, discussions surrounding trade relations between the United States and its global partners, particularly China, are expected to significantly influence market dynamics. Should these negotiations fail to yield positive outcomes, we predict a rise in volatility across global markets. This increased instability is likely to create substantial challenges for cryptocurrencies, which may struggle to maintain their value amidst such fluctuations.Bitcoin ETF TrackerThe above table is the BTC spot ETF net inflow data in the past five trading sessions.The inflow tracker table shows a considerable increase in capital entering Bitcoin (BTC) through the exchange-traded fund (ETF) mechanism. In the previous week, the robust demand for BTC ETFs pushed the price above the pivotal $100,000 level. However, the significant decrease in inflows noted on Monday and Tuesday corresponds with our evaluation that short-term investors were selling their holdings and shifting their investments to the US stock market for better upside rewards. Nonetheless, this trend reversed on Wednesday, with net inflows reaching a remarkable $319 million. This strong interest from traditional financial institutions improved the bullish sentiment for BTC, which positively influenced the overall cryptocurrency market.Macro at a glance Last Thursday (25-05-08)The Bank of England has reduced its interest rate by 25 basis points to 4.25%, in line with market predictions. Governor Andrew Bailey indicated the possibility of further reductions, citing a UK-US agreement aimed at eliminating tariffs on specific goods to enhance trade. This move aligns with economic projections and the central bank's messaging. US initial jobless claims stood at 228,000 for the week, which is lower than the anticipated 231,000, indicating a more robust labor market than expected.Last Friday (25-05-09)In April, Canada saw an increase of 7,400 jobs; however, the unemployment rate rose from 6.7% in March to 6.9% during the same period, slightly exceeding the anticipated rate of 6.8%. This information indicates a mixed performance in the labor market, aligning with observed trends.On Tuesday (25-05-13)The unemployment rate in the UK was reported at 4.5% in March, in line with market expectations, suggesting a stable labor market.The US Consumer Price Index (CPI) showed an annual increase of 2.4% in April, as anticipated. The core CPI remained unchanged at an annual growth rate of 2.8%, indicating that inflationary pressures are being managed effectively. This stability could enable the Federal Reserve to uphold its existing policy approach, steering clear of any immediate adjustments to interest rates, as inflation trends are consistent with forecasts.On Wednesday (25-05-14)In April, Germany's Consumer Price Index (CPI) recorded a 2.1% increase year-over-year, a minor decline from March's 2.2%. This trend is consistent with forecasts of slowing inflation within the Eurozone. The reduction in German CPI from 2.2% to 2.1% indicates a cooling of inflation, which is a favorable sign for the Eurozone. Such a development may alleviate the pressure on the European Central Bank to implement stricter monetary policies, thereby aiding economic recovery initiatives.Why trade OTC?  Binance offers our clients various ways to access OTC trading, including chat communication channels and the Binance OTC platform (https://www.binance.com/en/otc) for manual price quotations, Algo Orders, or automated price quotations via Binance Convert and Block Trade platform (https://www.binance.com/en/convert) and the Binance Convert OTC API. Join our Telegram Channel (@BinanceOTCTrading) to stay up to date with the markets!

According to PANews, the recent significant rise in Ethereum's price has prompted questions about its connection to the Pectra upgrade. However, the upgrade is more of a follow-up to the Cancun upgrade, focusing on underlying optimizations rather than groundbreaking innovations.From a technical standpoint, the Pectra upgrade includes four Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs) aimed at enhancing Ethereum's stability and efficiency. These include EIP-7044 for standardizing status expiration, EIP-7524 for redefining fuel limits, EIP-7697 for optimizing transaction pipelines, and EIP-6789 for improving difficulty adjustments. These upgrades address minor issues left by the Cancun upgrade.The real driver behind Ethereum's price movement is a recovery from excessive fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD). In recent months, Ethereum faced intense scrutiny, with concerns about layer 2 liquidity dispersion, comparisons with Solana's performance, and unmet expectations for layer 2 ecosystem applications. Additionally, narratives around restaking, modularity, and zk technology failed to capture value.Despite these challenges, key facts were overlooked: DeFi's total locked value remains stable at $119 billion, the Cancun upgrade significantly reduced layer 2 costs, ETF inflows continue to strengthen, and new narratives like RWA and PayFi are primarily developing within the Ethereum ecosystem.Ethereum's fundamentals are not as dire as market sentiment suggests. Institutional investors have recognized this imbalance. A notable example is Abraxas Capital's substantial purchase of 242,652 ETH, valued at approximately $561 million. Between May 9-14, large ETH transfers exceeding $1 million increased significantly, and institutional wallet addresses showed a marked growth in ETH balances, indicating planned large-scale accumulation by institutions.Thus, if a rationale for Ethereum's recent surge is needed, it could be attributed to a rediscovery of its value after excessive FUD, with institutions seizing the opportunity to invest.

According to BlockBeats, CryptoQuant has disclosed the average cost basis for Ethereum holders based on wallet sizes. Addresses holding between 100 and 1,000 ETH have an average cost of $2,225. Those with 1,000 to 10,000 ETH have an average cost of $2,196. Wallets containing 10,000 to 100,000 ETH show an average cost of $1,994. Finally, addresses with over 100,000 ETH have an average cost basis of $1,222.

According to Binance Market Data, Ethereum (ETH) crossed the 2,600 USDT benchmark and is now trading at 2,606.050049 USDT, with a 0.24% decrease in 24 hours.

According to Foresight News, the Ethereum Foundation has announced the launch of the 'Trillion-Dollar Security Initiative' aimed at enhancing the security of the Ethereum protocol through funding research, development, and audits. The project will be initially co-chaired by Fredrik Svantes, Head of Protocol Security, and Josh Stark from the EF management team. The initiative will support security improvements for key clients, formal verification, fuzz testing, bug bounty programs, and community security education. The foundation emphasized the importance of ensuring the robustness and attack resistance of the protocol as the Ethereum ecosystem continues to expand. Funding for the initiative will be provided through the Ethereum Ecosystem Support Program (ESP), encouraging global researchers and developers to participate in the effort.

According to Foresight News, security audit firm CertiK has announced that it has received two research grants from the Ethereum Foundation for the first quarter of 2025. These grants are primarily focused on the formal verification of zkEVM, a technology aimed at enhancing Ethereum's scalability through zero-knowledge proofs. CertiK's advanced formal verification technology, designed to handle complex zero-knowledge proof systems, provides robust security support for Ethereum's scalability strategy. This technology has already been applied to various Web3 projects, including zkWasm, TON main chain contracts, Cosmos SDK, Ant Group's HyperEnclave TEE, and Asterinas OS. zkEVM, or zero-knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machine, represents an innovation in blockchain technology, utilizing zero-knowledge proofs to achieve scalability for Ethereum.

According to PANews, recent data from Sentora indicates that over the past week, $1.2 billion worth of Ethereum has been withdrawn from centralized exchanges. This ongoing net outflow trend has intensified since early May, suggesting an increase in Ethereum accumulation in the market while selling pressure diminishes.

According to BlockBeats, Abraxas Capital has significantly increased its Ethereum holdings by borrowing USDT. Over the past week, the firm has acquired a total of 242,652 ETH, valued at approximately $561 million. This strategic move highlights Abraxas Capital's growing interest in Ethereum as part of its investment portfolio.

On May 13, 2025, 19:43 PM(UTC). According to Binance Market Data, Ethereum has crossed the 2,700 USDT benchmark and is now trading at 2,708.429932 USDT, with a narrowed 10.37% increase in 24 hours.

On May 13, 2025, 17:02 PM(UTC). According to Binance Market Data, Ethereum has crossed the 2,600 USDT benchmark and is now trading at 2,600.439941 USDT, with a narrowed 4.08% increase in 24 hours.

According to Foresight News, Nick Tomaino, founder of 1confirmation, has expressed that many still believe Ethereum's Layer 2 solutions could harm ETH. However, he argues that Layer 2 solutions facilitate the development of crypto applications into independent application chains, granting developers greater autonomy. This process also aids in distributing ETH and strengthening the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) developer ecosystem. Furthermore, increased activity on Layer 2 solutions can lead to the burning of ETH, thereby reducing its supply.

According to Foresight News, Ethereum core developer Tim Beiko has raised a question regarding the potential increase of the gas limit by tenfold. Beiko suggested that to achieve this increase, the gas costs for CREATE, CREATE2, and SSTORE operations would also need to be raised by ten times. He questioned whether this would constitute a net improvement and asked for opinions on whether state growth, as the primary bottleneck for expanding Layer 1 gas, should be addressed through pricing. Beiko initiated a poll on the platform X, offering options such as 'gas limit and opcode cost' and 'do not increase storage costs.' The discussion highlights ongoing considerations within the Ethereum community about balancing network scalability and cost efficiency.