Ethereum ether (ETH) is stealing the show in Monday’s cryptocurrency rally, hitting a six-week high as investor demand shows signs of returning to the second-largest digital asset after months of sharp declines.
Ethereum’s native token ETH rose to over $2,300, gaining over 10% in the last 24 hours. That easily outpaced bitcoin’s 3% advance and the CoinDesk 20 index’s roughly 5% gain, signaling a shift in momentum toward assets beyond bitcoin.
The move comes after a torrid run for the broader crypto market, including ether. With the bounce, ETH is still down more than 50% from its August all-time high and, at one point, had fallen roughly 65% from its peak during the winter market crash.
Prices stabilized in February and March and institutional flows are starting to turn favorable.
U.S. spot ether ETFs brought in more than $160 million in new funds last week, marking their largest weekly inflows since mid-January, according to data from SoSoValue. Global asset manager BlackRock also launched a yield-paying Ethereum (ETHB) staking ETF, which has already attracted more than $45 million in inflows in its first two days of trading, in addition to an initial investment of $104 million, data from Farside Investors shows.
Meanwhile, BitMine (BMNR), the largest corporate holder focused on Ethereum treasury strategies, has purchased nearly 122,000 ETH (worth approximately more than $280 million at current prices) in the past two weeks, adding another source of demand.
BMNR shares rose 13.6% on Monday. Another major ETH treasury, Sharplink Gaming (SBET), is seeing a 9.1% advance.
bitcoin rotation
Analysts say the price action could reflect investors turning to ether after bitcoin dominated inflows earlier this year.
“ETH’s relative strength suggests potential rotation dynamics, possibly tied to network developments and valuation appeal beyond bitcoin,” said Joel Kruger, market strategist at LMAX Group.
He added that ether has surpassed a significant range against the bitcoin in which it trades since late January. “potentially marking a significant bottom for ETHBTC.”
Adam Saville Brown, head of trading at Tesseract Group, sees the move as a sign that risk appetite is broadening across the cryptocurrency market.
“Ethereum’s outperformance is worth watching,” said Adam Saville Brown, chief commercial officer at Tesseract Group. “ETH is back above $2,200 after weeks of underperformance. That kind of rotation into the second-largest asset suggests risk appetite is broadening, which tends to be a healthy sign.”
Still, he warned that the rally could remain sensitive to macroeconomic signals.
“If Powell takes a cautious tone on inflation, altcoin gains will recover faster than bitcoin,” Saville Brown said. “The honest assessment is that the floor appears solid. The ceiling requires more than rate maintenance to overcome.”
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