Ethereum extended its recent rally after climbing more than 5% on a Friday session, touching $2,420 for the first time in months. Trading above $2,380, the cryptocurrency's upward move was preceded by a sharp collapse in crowd sentiment and several key on-chain signals.
According to analysis from Santiment, crowd sentiment on Ethereum hit a three-month low on August 17, with its seven-day weighted sentiment average turning negative. Two days later, prices surged. Additional data showed that an eth_whale_dump anomaly fired once on August 18 at roughly $7.55 million, down from five events in each of the prior two weeks. Meanwhile, ETH held on exchanges fell to approximately 6.54 million coins, marking the lowest level of that stretch.
Macroeconomic factors also influenced the movement as the US Treasury expanded long-end bond buybacks, followed by a wave of short liquidations. Analytics platforms noted that while negative crowd sentiment did not directly cause the rally, it left a substantial amount of short positions in its path.
Institutional interest supported the market as well, with US spot Ethereum ETFs recording consecutive days of fresh capital inflows. Funds added over $220 million in total net inflows on August 20, following $189 million the previous day.
Analysts tracking the asset have highlighted several technical levels moving forward. Market commentator Michaël van de Poppe noted that Ethereum could see consolidation following the recent move, but expects the asset to continue higher as long as it remains above $2,000, pointing to short-term upside levels at $2,465 and $2,900. Longer-term projections from Crypto Patel highlight the $4,700 level as a key resistance point, the clearing of which could open the door toward higher targets at $10,000, $15,000, and $20,000. Analyst Axel Bitblaze observed similarities to previous price action near the $1,500 accumulation zone and anticipates potential sideways trading or an additional dip before further upward movement.
