Ethereum is trading around $2,230, roughly flat over the past week despite a broader market sell-off that saw ETH drop more than 7% in a single day on Thursday amid AI-driven panic. The price is holding a key support zone while large holders accumulate coins and sentiment begins to recover.
Analyst Sees Retracement Complete
Popular crypto analyst Crypto Capo believes the worst is behind Ethereum. In a recent update on X, Capo said the retracement has now played out. According to the analyst, the pullback started at the same resistance level and ended at the same support level as a similar move in 2025, a fractal that he expects to resolve in a bullish continuation along with the rest of the market.
Whales Accumulate
On-chain data appears to support that view, with large holders positioning for upside. One whale using two wallets withdrew 18,550 ETH, worth more than $42 million, in just five days. Another picked up roughly 13,080 ETH, worth about $30 million, from Binance over the same period. A previously dormant wallet also swapped $19.7 million in USDT for ETH.
Institutional buyers are joining in. Bitmine added another 5,000 ETH, worth about $11.22 million, during the dip and now holds 4.96% of Ethereum’s total supply.
The $2,200 level is also the realized price for accumulation addresses—the average cost basis of wallets that have only been buying. Whales appear to be defending that floor.
Sentiment Recovers
The Ethereum Fear & Greed Index now reads 45, in Neutral territory. That is a sharp turnaround from 35 a week ago and 27 a month ago, both in Fear. Today’s reading is also stronger than Bitcoin’s score of 39, a sign that sentiment toward ETH is recovering faster than toward the market leader.
Whale activity scores as Neutral at 59 on the index, while the social component has jumped into Extreme Greed. Price, volume and technical readings remain in Fear, which leaves room for those metrics to catch up if the Ethereum price keeps climbing.
Retail Capitulation Preceded 2026 Low
History offers another reason for optimism. In June 2026, Santiment data showed the crowd had essentially written off Ethereum. Social sentiment collapsed into extreme fear, and the smallest wallets dumped their holdings.
Wallets holding less than 0.01 ETH cut their balances by 1,791 ETH in just two days, while wallets with under 0.1 ETH sold 0.90% of their supply in a month. ETH was trading near $1,630 at the time.
That capitulation marked the turning point. ETH set its 2026 low near $1,567 on June 6 and has since climbed more than 40% to current levels. It is a textbook example of retail selling into the bottom while larger investors accumulate, the same pattern now playing out around $2,200.
Key Levels to Watch
The key zone for bulls is $2,200 to $2,220. As long as ETH holds above it, the next upside target sits at $2,425. A break above that level would put the Ethereum price on track to confirm Capo’s bullish continuation.
On the downside, a loss of $2,200 would expose $2,000 and then $1,900 as the next demand zones.
Risks Remain
Despite heavy spot buying, the whale-versus-retail position delta remains slightly negative, meaning big traders still lean short overall. Market maker Wintermute recently opened a $73 million short position on Hyperliquid, with $26.4 million in ETH.
But some whales are already betting the other way. One trader who went long at $2,221 after the latest drop is sitting on a floating profit of around $252,000 and has won his last 10 trades in a row.
Institutional demand will also matter. Spot Ethereum ETFs posted strong inflow streaks in September, and a return of those flows could give ETH the push it needs.
