ETH investors v. whales: Who will sweep this powerplay?

• ETH retail demand sees an uptick but whales counter with sell pressure.
• ETH’s price action indicates accumulation, however, buying pressure lays low. 

Where is ETH currently in the grand scheme of things as far as adoption is concerned? We recently saw it struggle to retain value above $2,000, but this week something interesting is happening.

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Glassnode’s latest on-chain data revealed that the number of addresses holding 0.01 ETH or more achieved a new ATH on 10 July. In other words, ETH managed to maintain healthy demand levels and the new addresses milestone confirmed that this demand is growing.

Although the above may be true, the dynamics of address activity and demand may determine whether or not it is enough for a large move. For example, a lot of retail activity may drive the address count higher. It is however, not a powerful observation if whales are not involved.

Addresses holding at least 1,000 ETH have been trimming their balances. This meant that the whales have been contributing to sell pressure.

Source: Glassnode

Whale games are holding back ETH’s potential upside

The above data means that retail buyers are contributing liquidity for whales. As such, this has limited ETH’s potential rally. We did see a surge in demand in the last 24 hours, but this is likely because the price hovered at a noteworthy price level.

ETH recently retested a key Fibonacci support at the 0.786 level as shown below. It has been hovering above this level for some time, which may have been due to heavy accumulation within this zone. However, the continued sell pressure from whales could limit the impact of the surging demand.

Source: TradingView

A closer look at ETH’s price chart revealed that the cryptocurrency has also been attempting to bounce off the 50% Relative Strength Index (RSI) level. The Money Flow Index (MFI) also confirmed that there was some accumulation. In short, the retail demand, at press time, was in a tug of war with the whales. But which group will win?

Glassnode data on ETH flows reveals that the number of receiving addresses recently dropped to a 5-month low.

Read about ETH price prediction for 2023/2024

This observation enforces the idea that the current level of buying pressure is low. ETH might give in to the bears if this prevails along with the aforementioned sell pressure from whales.  But just like any tug of war, ETH bulls might regain control if market dynamics change in their favor.