Ethereum, institutional buying is pushing it up...why is the $3,000 rally getting further away?

▲ Ethereum (ETH)

Institutional funds are flowing into Ethereum (Ethereum, ETH), but persistent selling pressure from large holders is directly blocking the scenario of a $3,000 recovery.

According to financial media outlet Benzinga on May 7 (local time), Ethereum is caught between conflicting trends of whale selling and increasing institutional adoption. The market is reacting more sensitively to the selling pressure from large wallets, which is suppressing short-term prices, rather than Ethereum's long-term position as a tokenized financial infrastructure.

Crypto chart analyst Ali Martinez analyzed that Ethereum wallets holding between 1,000 ETH and 10,000 ETH have reversed their accumulation trend that lasted for several months. According to Martinez, the holdings of this group of wallets increased from 12.95 million ETH in April 2025 to 15.95 million ETH on October 6, 2025, but have since decreased to approximately 12.52 million ETH. The reduction rate is 21.5%.

This group of whales is considered an investor base that has supplied liquidity during past major Ethereum market cycles. The recent selling pressure has been identified as a factor increasing supply burden in the market and making further breakthroughs difficult. Martinez stated that for Ethereum to continue its movement towards $3,000, new retail investors or institutional demand are needed to absorb the selling volume.

On the other hand, the trend of institutional adoption remains strong. Trader Lucky quoted investor Tom Lee's long-term bullish perspective, stating that Lee once compared the evolution of the Ethereum network to the changes in the US dollar after the collapse of the gold standard in 1971. Benzinga pointed out that while Ethereum is experiencing short-term price pressure due to distributed selling by whales, it is simultaneously establishing itself as the dominant settlement layer for tokenized finance.

Indicators supporting institutional adoption were also presented. Over $17 billion worth of real-world assets have been tokenized on Ethereum, representing a 315% increase year-over-year. The volume of Ethereum-based tokenized US Treasury bonds reached approximately $8 billion, and over $175 billion in stablecoins were settled on the network. BlackRock, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Fidelity Investments, and Franklin Templeton are also building Ethereum-based tokenization infrastructure, and approximately 61% of all tokenized assets worldwide are currently operating on Ethereum.

Ultimately, Ethereum's short-term direction depends on how quickly institutional demand absorbs the selling volume from whales. While increasing institutional adoption creates a long-term bullish case, the 21.5% reduction in holdings by large wallets holding between 1,000 ETH and 10,000 ETH remains the biggest burden on the Ethereum market as it approaches the $3,000 breakthrough.

*Disclaimer: This article is for investment reference only, and we are not responsible for any investment losses based on it. The content should be interpreted for informational purposes only.*