At the beginning of the year, many experts predicted that Ethereum could reach five-digit values. However, the growing interest of institutional investors in Bitcoin (BTC) and the lackluster dynamics of ETH forced analysts to revise their forecasts.

On-chain metrics and technical indicators confirm that investors' expectations for ETH have been overly positive. We explain why.

Investors Prefer Bitcoin

In August, Pi Cycle Top suggested that ETH could exceed $6,000 before the end of this bull market. However, several factors have changed since then, making the initial forecast difficult to achieve.

Pi Cycle Top is an indicator of the maximum price that a cryptocurrency can reach in a certain period. It uses a 111-day simple moving average (SMA) and a 350-day SMA to predict the peak.

At the time of writing, the price of Ethereum is $2,603, and the 350-day SMA (purple line), which signals a potential maximum price, is now at $5,699. This means that ETH may have difficulty breaking out of this zone.

The decline in Ethereum's price growth potential is directly related to the decline in investor interest in the asset, especially compared to Bitcoin.

For example, Bitcoin ETFs have raised $1 billion in just three days this week, highlighting strong institutional interest. Meanwhile, ETH ETFs only raised $5 million on October 17.

Retail investors seem to share the big players’ views. According to CryptoQuant, the Coinbase Premium Index recently turned negative. This change suggests that market participants are more likely to sell ETH than buy it.

Ethereum Price Prediction: Correction Still Possible

The current Ethereum chart is reminiscent of May and November 2021, when ETH prices fell by double-digit percentages. For example, the altcoin lost 52% of its value in May of that year, and plunged 45% in November.

The altcoin is currently trading above the $2,455 support. However, low trading volume may mean it is unlikely to hold at this level.

If history repeats itself, Ethereum could correct to $2,186. However, a surge in investor interest in the asset will push the altcoin upward and help it reach $3,814 in the medium to long term.

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