A widely watched indicator to assess whether the cryptocurrency market is in a bullish or bearish phase is the ether-bitcoin ratio (ETH/BTC).
On Tuesday, the ratio fell to 0.02835, its lowest level in 10 months and the weakest reading since July 2025. The drop comes as ether fell more than 2% on Tuesday, compared to bitcoin’s drop of just over 1%. The ETH/BTC ratio is now down more than 35% from its August high of 0.04324.
The ETH/BTC ratio measures the relative performance of ether against bitcoin on crypto exchanges and is considered a key indicator of market risk appetite. A rising ratio typically indicates that investors are rotating capital into ether and other riskier crypto assets, reflecting stronger risk sentiment. Conversely, a declining ratio suggests that investors are favoring bitcoin’s relative stability and defensive characteristics.
The pair peaked above 0.08 in December 2021 before entering a prolonged multi-year downtrend. Much of the weakness through 2024 and 2025 was due to bitcoin’s outperformance following the launch and success of the US bitcoin spot ETFs in January 2024, which attracted significant institutional inflows.
The ratio finally bottomed at 0.01770 in April 2025, during the market turmoil surrounding President Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariff announcements. It then recovered sharply, gaining approximately 135% by the end of 2025, before changing course again. Despite that recovery, the ratio has since fallen another 35% from its recent highs.
Technically, the ETH/BTC ratio remains substantially below its 200-week moving average, currently at 0.04828, reinforcing the view that ether remains in a long-term bear market relative to bitcoin.
