Ethereum rips past $2,300 as ETF inflows ignite fresh investor rush

The cryptocurrency market encountered a sell-off on Monday but has quickly bounced back, with most major coins now in the green. 

Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, is trading above $2,300 once again after dropping below $2,250 on Monday.

Ethereum could continue its upward movement in the near term, supported by institutional and retail demand.

Institutions and retail traders resume ETH acquisition

ETH is up by 1% in the last 24 hours and is now trading above $2,300 per coin. The positive performance comes as the broader cryptocurrency market recovers from Monday’s dip.

Growing institutional and retail demand is also pushing ETH’s price higher.

Data obtained from CoinGlass’s ETF page reveals that spot Ethereum ETFs recorded an inflow of $69.77 million on Monday, following the massive inflows recorded last week. 

In addition to that, Ethereum (ETH) treasury firm BitMine Immersion Technologies announced on Monday that it acquired 101,627 ETH last week, marking its largest weekly purchase since mid-December. 

That amount is also about 42% greater than its average weekly acquisition over the past month.

The latest acquisition pushed BitMine's Ethereum stash to 4.97 million ETH, worth roughly $11.44 billion at the time of publication.

The company stated that it is 82% closer to its goal of acquiring 5% of the top altcoin.

According to BitMine Chairman Thomas Lee, the crypto winter is coming to an end. He stated that,

"We see growing signs that the 'mini-crypto' winter is coming to an end. As downside tail risks for the US-Iran war diminish, ETH has risen 41% from its early February lows."

"And ETH has outperformed the S&P 500 by 2,280 basis points since the war started and remains the single best-performing asset in the world (besides crude oil prices)," Lee added.

Furthermore, retail demand for Ethereum continues to increase.

Ether’s futures Open Interest (OI) reads $31.04 billion on Tuesday, up from the $28 billion recorded the previous day. 

Ethereum price forecast

The ETH/USD 4-hour chart is bearish as Ether remains below the 100-day EMA in recent days. 

Ether hit the $2,461 mark on Friday but failed to surpass the $2,500 psychological level, dropping below $2,250 on Monday. 

However, Ether continues to trade above the 20-day and 50-day EMAs and could retest the $2,500 mark in the near term. 

Momentum indicators back this tone, with the Relative Strength Index (RSI) near 50 and the MACD lines close to the neutral zone, both pointing to positive but not overextended upside pressure.

If the rally persists, initial resistance emerges at the 100-day EMA near $2,354.

An extended bullish scenario would bring the more distant resistance levels at $2,746 and $3,411 into focus in the near to medium term.

However, if the rally fails, immediate support lies at the 20-day EMA, followed by a dense floor formed by the convergence of the 50-day EMA and the $2,211 horizontal level. 

The bulls would need to defend the $2,107 support level to maintain a bullish outlook on the 4-hour chart.