Can ETH bulls defend crucial $1,500 support as selloff deepens? Check forecast

Ethereum has been underperforming since the start of the week, losing 17% of its value over the last seven days.

The decline comes amid a massive selloff in the broader cryptocurrency market.

Ethereum has lost the $1,700 level, with the bears now targeting the $1,500 psychological level in the near term.

However, the weekly chart is extremely bearish, with the liquidity magnet around the $1,380 zone.

While it remains to be seen if Ethereum will drop to this April 2025 low, the technical indicators suggest that the bears are very much in control.

Bitmine’s Tom Lee remains optimistic, predicts ETH at $250,000

Ethereum has been underperforming in recent weeks, but BitMine’s chairman, Tom Lee, is optimistic about its price in the long term.

Bitmine is the leading corporate holder of Ethereum. However, due to the current bearish market, the company is sitting on nearly $9 billion in unrealized losses.

Despite that, Tom Lee reiterated an ultra-bullish long-term outlook for Ethereum, projecting a potential price target of $250,000 for Ethereum. 

Speaking at the Proof of Talk conference in Paris, Lee argued that Ethereum is being underestimated by markets and that current pessimism may represent a strong long-term buying opportunity. 

Lee’s central thesis is that the next major phase of global economic activity will be driven by autonomous AI agents interacting in real time. 

He noted that Ethereum is best positioned to serve as this base layer due to its smart contract infrastructure and established developer ecosystem. 

Hence, Lee believes that Ethereum is not just a financial asset but a settlement currency for machine-driven economic activity.

The Bitmine chairman also emphasized structural changes within the Ethereum ecosystem, noting that the Ethereum Foundation has reduced its holdings to a small fraction of the total supply. 

Ethereum price forecast: Bears extend the decline

Ethereum is down 4% at the time of writing on Friday, maintaining a bearish bias amid its six-day decline. 

The ETH/USD weekly chart is bearish as Ethereum is trading well below the 50-day EMA around $2,116 and the 100-day EMA near $2,223, further reinforcing the overhead supply zone.

Momentum indicators on the daily chart reinforce the bearish momentum.

The RSI is deeply oversold at 29, and the MACD remains below its signal line, suggesting downside pressure dominates despite the risk of intermittent corrective bounces.

At press time, ETH is trading at $1,682. It has already dropped below the February 6 low of $1,747, leaving it vulnerable to a decline towards lower support levels at $1,538 and $1,380, last visited in April 2025. 

However, if the minor $1,630 support level holds, Ethereum could recover and target the initial resistance at $1,835. 

A decisive break is needed above this level before Ethereum can reclaim the $2,070 resistance area.