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Ethereum’s largest holders continued increasing their share of the network despite recent weakness in price action.
Santiment’s post on X showed that wallets holding at least 100,000 $ETH collectively controlled 17.41 million $ETH, equivalent to 22.03% of Ethereum’s circulating supply.
More importantly, that figure marked the highest concentration recorded in ten weeks, highlighting sustained accumulation among the network’s most influential participants.
The trend emerged while Ethereum struggled to reclaim major resistance levels, creating a divergence between whale behavior and market performance.
Rather than reducing exposure during uncertainty, large holders continued absorbing supply. This pattern suggested growing confidence among deep-pocketed investors, as accumulation persisted despite the absence of a confirmed bullish trend across the broader market.
Traders reduce risk despite whale confidence
Derivatives activity painted a more cautious picture than on-chain accumulation data. Open Interest declined by 3.92% to $15.42 billion, showing that leveraged traders reduced exposure during the latest consolidation phase.
Rather than aggressively expanding positions, many participants appeared focused on limiting risk while Ethereum remained range-bound.
This decline suggested that traders lacked conviction regarding the next major directional move.
Importantly, falling Open Interest did not coincide with significant whale distribution, creating a notable disconnect between long-term accumulation and short-term positioning.
Such divergences often emerge during periods of uncertainty when larger investors continue building exposure while speculative traders wait for clearer signals. As a result, participation weakened even though whale activity remained supportive.
Can $ETH reclaim resistance as bears retain control?
Ethereum [$ETH] continued trading within the established $1,847 support and $2,419 resistance range, with the price hovering near $2,007 on the chart. Buyers repeatedly defended the lower boundary, preventing a deeper decline.
However, sellers continued limiting advances toward the upper resistance zone, keeping Ethereum trapped inside consolidation.
The broader indicator structure reinforced this cautious outlook with ADX climbing to 33.89, showing that trend strength remained elevated rather than weakening.
Meanwhile, the -DI reading stood at 31.41, while the +DI remained significantly lower at 8.88. This gap suggested that bearish pressure continued dominating despite support remaining intact.
Therefore, Ethereum would likely require stronger buying participation before mounting a sustainable challenge toward the $2,419 resistance level.
Ethereum Funding Rates reveal persistent bullish positioning
Funding Rates increased by 27.04% and reached 0.008793, remaining firmly positive throughout the latest consolidation period.
Positive funding indicated that long traders continued paying shorts, highlighting a persistent preference for bullish positioning.
This trend contrasted with the decline in Open Interest and revealed an interesting split in trader behavior. Participation decreased overall, yet traders who remained active largely continued favoring upside exposure.
Such conditions suggested that confidence weakened less than participation figures initially implied.
Nevertheless, positive funding alone does not guarantee a recovery. If buyers fail to reclaim key resistance levels, heavily long-biased positioning could increase volatility.
For now, derivatives traders continue maintaining a constructive outlook despite Ethereum’s inability to establish a sustained advance.
Conclusively, Ethereum’s largest holders continued accumulating while derivatives traders reduced exposure and sellers retained technical control.
However, positive Funding Rates showed that bullish conviction has not disappeared. If buyers reclaim the upper range resistance, whale accumulation could begin aligning with price action.
Until then, Ethereum remains caught between growing long-term confidence and a market structure that still favors caution.
Final Summary
- Ethereum whales continued accumulating while broader market participation remained cautious.
- Positive funding persisted, but sellers still controlled the technical structure.
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