The market behavior of Ethereum is showing remarkable divergence. While large funds like Fidelity, Grayscale, and Bitwise are reducing their Ethereum holdings, the latest data from Arkham shows that Tom Lee and Bitmine Immersion Technologies are taking the opposite approach.

Lee's company has not only maintained its holdings but has actively increased its position in ETH, becoming one of the largest holders of the asset. This growing divergence highlights the widespread debate among investors regarding Ethereum's long-term role in the digital economy.

Bitmine's Bold Bet on Ethereum

Bitmine previously focused primarily on Bitcoin mining, but has now significantly shifted its strategy. With the support of investor Peter Thiel, the company has paused its Bitcoin operations and redirected funds into Ethereum.

In just 35 days, Bitmine has acquired over 1.17 million ETH, with an average cost of $3,492 per ETH. The total acquisition amount reached $5.26 billion, making Bitmine the largest holder of Ethereum reserves in the corporate sector and the third largest public cryptocurrency treasury in the world, behind MicroStrategy and Marathon Digital, with digital assets exceeding Bitmine.

The shift from Bitcoin to Ethereum indicates a strong belief in Ethereum's role beyond mere value storage. Unlike Bitcoin, often referred to as 'digital gold', Ethereum offers broader utility through smart contracts and decentralized applications. Bitmine has drastically shifted its balance sheet towards ETH, betting that the demand for this utility will drive long-term value growth.

Arkham's data shows a starkly different pattern among institutional investors. While some traditional asset management companies are selling off parts of their ETH holdings, 'whales' have quietly accumulated over 400,000 ETH during the recent price drop.

Ali Martinez pointed out that wallets holding between 10,000 and 100,000 ETH currently control nearly 29.43 million ETH. This surge indicates a growing interest from large investors, who view the pullback as a buying opportunity.

Key Support Levels for the Future

According to Martinez, Ethereum's heatmap highlights two key support areas at $4,000 and $3,700. Nearly 419,000 ETH have accumulated around the $3,673 to $3,686 range, indicating strong support at this level.

Another cluster is located around $4,000, reinforcing the view that this level is critical for the asset. If Ethereum maintains these support levels, momentum could drive the price towards resistance zones around $4,600 to $4,800. However, a drop below $3,700 could trigger broader selling pressure.

ETH Market Outlook

The current price of Ethereum is $4,339, showing a 7% decline over the past week but a 4% increase in the last 24 hours. Ethereum's market cap exceeds $525 billion, still making it the second-largest cryptocurrency.