Ethereum (ETH) dramatically declined in the first quarter of 2025, with its value plunging nearly 50%. By comparison, Bitcoin (BTC) only saw a 15% decline in the same period.
This stark performance differential has made some investors anxious because it looks like Ethereum has been left in the dust by its main competitor in the cryptocurrency market.
ETH significantly underperformed this past quarter, losing nearly half its value, compared to Bitcoin “only” losing 15% pic.twitter.com/u2qp0VjeCv
— IntoTheBlock (@intotheblock) April 5, 2025
Whale Activity Shows Continued Sell-offs
Fresh signs from the on-chain analytics platform, @santimentfeed, are not looking good for Ethereum. In just the last 48 hours, a staggering 500,000 ETH have been sold off by the big players, aka whales. This is obviously not great for the price action of Ethereum right now, feeding (pun intended) into the narrative that major holders are moving into sell mode and that big institutional investors have lost confidence in the asset.
500,000 #Ethereum $ETH were sold by whales over the last 48 hours, shows data from @santimentfeed! pic.twitter.com/Qa1D6mpDyI
— Ali (@ali_charts) April 4, 2025
A whale who was an original Ethereum investor from the 2015 ICO has been selling off a big chunk of their ETH. This investor, who picked up 100,000 ETH during the Ethereum IPO, has sold another 612 ETH, worth around $1.12 million, in the past week or so. (For perspective, the same person could have sold 612 ETH for $5 million last summer. Yes, that was a thing.) The cost basis for this massive holder is shockingly low, with an average purchase price of just $0.31 per ETH. This highlights the enormous profit this whale has made, even amid Ethereum’s current decline.
时隔 2 天，「2015 年 ICO 10 万枚 $ETH 的 OG」再次抛售 612 枚 ETH（112 万美元），成本低至 0.31 美元🤪
该巨鲸四月以来已累计卖出 2213 ETH，获利 407.6 万美元；目前三个钱包地址仍持有 32788 枚 ETH，价值 5934 万美元
抛售地址 https://t.co/TnAKz8CXt0
本文由 #Gateio | @Gateio_zh 赞助 https://t.co/DVqPq8u7WW pic.twitter.com/I6gthVAAYa
— Ai 姨 (@ai_9684xtpa) April 5, 2025
This whale has made a total of 2,213 ETH since April, which has brought in profit of $4.076 million. And even after these sales, this whale still holds a significant amount of Ethereum. Three separate wallet addresses might be controlled by the same individual or entity and collectively amount to 32,788 ETH, which is now worth $59.34 million. So while the ongoing sales of the aforementioned ETH might make you think the market is in a terrible condition, consider the fact this whale (and whoever or whatever might be under its banners) has unrealized gains of just under $60 million.
Ethereum ETFs See Positive Flows, but Challenges Persist
Even with Ethereum’s general difficulties, the data do show a few bright spots. On April 4, Ethereum-based spot ETFs actually enjoyed a net inflow of $2.06 million, which suggests that at least some institutional investors are still keen on Ethereum. What’s more, none of the nine Ethereum ETFs we track experienced even a net outflow on the day, which implies that certain parts of the marketplace might be placing some (albeit cautious) bets on Ethereum’s long-term prospects.
Despite being encouraging, these inflows are small in the larger context of Ethereum’s decreasing value. The inflows to Ethereum ETFs are tiny compared to the enormous sell-offs happening on the network. This disparity highlights the ongoing push and pull between the short-term performance of the market and the long-term belief of institutions in Ethereum.
On April 4, spot Bitcoin ETFs saw a total net outflow of $64.88 million, with none of the twelve ETFs recording a net inflow. In contrast, spot Ethereum ETFs recorded a total net inflow of $2.06 million, with none of the nine ETFs seeing a net outflow. https://t.co/Hj2Gs49bWa
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) April 5, 2025
A Deeper Look at Ethereum’s Underperformance
Why then has Bitcoin taken less punishment than Ethereum? The elements working against Ethereum make for a pretty long listing. Competing blockchains, for one, have been gaining ground as more scalable and efficient alternatives to Ethereum. Platforms like Solana, Avalanche, and Binance Smart Chain have lured away some developers and users with promises of lower fees and faster transaction speeds—they’re actually faster. And because they have lured away some developers and users, they’re eroding some of the market share that Ethereum used to have.
In addition, Ethereum’s recent price movements might also be affected by the upcoming protocol upgrades and the uncertainty surrounding the network’s shift to Ethereum 2.0. Although we expect this shift to reduce energy consumption and improve scalability in the long term, it’s already been a year since the last major upgrade, and several delays and other issues have marred this project’s timetable, seeming to contribute to investor reticence and downward pressure on the coin’s price.
One more aspect that could influence Ethereum’s performance is the macroeconomic state of affairs. The larger financial markets have been in a state of flux, and cryptocurrencies, with Ethereum included, often reflect these changes. Inflation is an uninvited guest, interest rates are on the rise, and there are serious geopolitical problems that are being certain to rock the boat of traditional financial markets. The result is a risk appetite that has dampened when it comes to speculative assets like Ethereum.
What’s Next for Ethereum?
Currently, Ethereum has a hard struggle with its price; significant sell-offs from whales have further pressured the market. But there is a silver lining: the flows into Ethereum-themed ETFs are quite positive. ETF investors seem to be valuing Ethereum very much like the institutional investors who invested in it several months ago. And that—investing in Ethereum for the long term—is somewhat promising.
The progress of Ethereum 2.0 and its transition to PoS will also be a closely followed item for the community that has formed around Ethereum. If the network can deliver on its promises of improved scalability, lower fees, and much more sustainable energy consumption, there may be a catalyst for a turnaround in the current downtrend. Until then, Ethereum is stuck in a very difficult spot, with whales continuing to dump on the market and the broader crypto market showing a lack of interest in the very near future for ETH.
Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.
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