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Ethereum has entered the spotlight once again after reaching a multi-year high above $4,790, only to retrace toward critical demand levels. The move highlights ongoing volatility as bulls remain patient, waiting for a breakout beyond the $4,900 level, a threshold that would push ETH into uncharted price territory. While the retracement may seem like a pause, market structure still favors strength, with higher lows forming and momentum shifting toward accumulation.

What makes the current setup even more compelling is the surge in whale activity. Arkham Intelligence data revealed that three new whale addresses collectively purchased $279.5 million worth of ETH in just the past 24 hours. These transactions underscore confidence from deep-pocketed players at a moment when Ethereum is consolidating below key resistance. Such large-scale accumulation typically signals expectations of further upside, aligning with growing optimism that ETH could soon break above its historic ceiling.

With supply on exchanges continuing to decline and institutional demand rising, Ethereum’s next move carries weight for the broader altcoin market. Traders and investors alike will be watching closely, as the convergence of whale accumulation and technical resilience suggests that Ethereum could be on the verge of another explosive phase.

Ethereum Whale Accumulation Deepens As Bitmine Expands Holdings

Ethereum’s bullish narrative continues to strengthen as whale activity accelerates. Arkham’s AI has linked the latest wave of ETH purchases to Bitmine, raising questions about whether strategist Tom Lee is doubling down on Ethereum exposure. Bitmine’s total ETH holdings are a staggering 1.174 million ETH, valued at around $5.26 billion at current prices.

This scale of accumulation places Bitmine among the most influential players in the Ethereum ecosystem, with its wallet activity now drawing comparisons to major institutional participants. The timing of these buys is especially significant, arriving as ETH consolidates just below the $4,900 mark, with bulls watching closely for a breakout into uncharted price territory.

What’s more, this accumulation trend aligns with moves from companies like Sharplink Gaming, which have also been positioning aggressively into Ethereum. The shift highlights a broader pattern: institutional actors are increasingly viewing ETH as a long-term strategic asset, not just a speculative play.

Adding further fuel to the bullish outlook, exchange supply is drying up while OTC desks report running out of Ethereum. This supply squeeze is historically a precursor to major rallies, as demand from whales and institutions collides with reduced availability. If these dynamics persist, Ethereum may be entering one of its most explosive phases yet, with whale behavior acting as the clearest signal of confidence.

ETH Holds $4,400 After Sharp Decline

Ethereum’s 4-hour chart highlights a healthy pullback from the recent peak near $4,790, with the price now consolidating around $4,414. This decline comes after a strong multi-week rally, suggesting that the move is more of a cooldown phase rather than a full trend reversal.

The 50-period SMA at $4,407 is now acting as immediate support, making this level a critical short-term battleground. If bulls can defend it, momentum could quickly shift back toward the $4,600–$4,800 resistance area, where ETH was recently rejected. A confirmed breakout above $4,900 would validate bullish strength and set the stage for fresh all-time highs.

On the downside, the 100-SMA ($4,025) and 200-SMA ($3,822) remain deeper support zones that could absorb stronger selling pressure if the $4,400 area fails. Importantly, trading volume shows heavy activity during the rally followed by lower participation during the retrace, implying sellers are not in full control.

Overall, Ethereum remains in an uptrend, but the current consolidation will determine its next leg. Holding above $4,400 keeps bulls in control, while a drop below could trigger a short-term correction before the uptrend resumes. This makes the coming sessions pivotal for ETH’s trajectory.

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• Rocket Pool price soared nearly 10% after Coinbase Ventures’s purchase of RPL tokens.
• The Coinbase venture arm announced the strategic investment on Thursday.
• RPL rose to highs of $29.25, with over $15 million traded in 24 hours as volume spiked 75%

Rocket Pool (RPL) price soared nearly 10% on Thursday to trade at intraday highs of $29.25 on the crypto exchange Coinbase. The token’s 24-hour trading volume rose 75% to over $15 million.

The price of the decentralised Ethereum staking protocol was around $28.45 at the time of writing, still up roughly 7% after a slight drawdown following broader crypto reaction to the US inflation data release.

Why did Rocket Pool price go up today?

Rocket Pool is a liquid staking protocol on Ethereum that has increasingly become popular across the ecosystem. Its website shows the protocol has over 779,800 ETH staked and more than 3,110 node operators. According to data from DeFiLlama, only Lido and Coinbase have more TVL than Rocket Pool among liquid staking platforms.

The native RPL tokens are used for incentivizing ecosystem users and for governance purposes. The RPL price surge today came after a major announcement related to the token.

On Thursday, Coinbase Ventures – the investment arm of US-based crypto exchange Coinbase, announced it had made a strategic investment in Rocket Pool. This was done via a purchase of RPL from the Rocket Pool team, Coinbase Ventures wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

Exciting news to share: Coinbase Ventures recently made a strategic investment into @Rocket_Pool by purchasing RPL tokens from the Rocket Pool team.

— Coinbase Ventures (@cbventures) August 10, 2023

The investment follows the Coinbase unit’s move to join Rocket Pool’s Oracle DAO and the unveiling of Base, the crypto exchange’s layer-2 platform. Highlighting the collaboration with Rocket Pool, the Coinbase team said the investment is part of the push to scale Ethereum’s infrastructure and bring the next billion users to the ecosystem.

“We know the Rocket Pool team shares this belief and we’re delighted to support them via active participation in their Oracle DAO and using ETH from our corporate balance sheet to operate several hundred nodes on the Rocket Pool network,” they wrote on X.