Ethereum [ETH] whale participation weakened sharply as large transaction activity dropped across the network.
An X post from a prominent market analyst showed that whale transactions fell by 86.6%, declining from 2,194 transactions recorded on the 5th of June to just 294 at the latest reading.
The drop highlighted a significant reduction in high-value transfers and suggested that major holders had stepped away from active network participation.
The decline emerged while Ethereum traded near an important recovery zone, making the slowdown particularly notable.
Large transaction counts often reflect increased engagement from institutions and high-net-worth investors. However, recent readings showed that those participants became far less active.
Although reduced whale activity did not automatically signal selling pressure, it reflected lower conviction among major market participants.
Leverage cooled but bullish bets on Ethereum remained
Derivatives activity weakened even as traders continued favoring long positions.
Open Interest declined by 11.45% to $10.4 billion, showing that market participants reduced active positions and removed capital from futures markets.
Funding Rates moved in the opposite direction, as the metric rose 34.71% to 0.01278, indicating that long traders continued paying a premium to maintain exposure.
The divergence suggested that bullish sentiment persisted despite lower overall participation.
Such a structure reflected selective optimism rather than broad market confidence.
Fewer traders remained active, yet those who stayed in the market continued favoring upside exposure.
Nevertheless, the decline in Open Interest showed that conviction had not expanded alongside funding rates.
Binance bulls held their ground
Top Binance traders maintained a heavily bullish stance despite weaker participation elsewhere in the market.
Binance’s Top Trader Long/Short Ratio stood at 2.81, while long accounts represented 73.76% of positions compared to 26.24% for short accounts.
The figures showed that experienced traders had not abandoned their bullish outlook despite falling whale activity and declining Open Interest.
Instead, they continued positioning for higher prices, suggesting confidence in Ethereum’s ability to sustain its rebound.
However, concentrated bullish positioning also introduced risk.
When sentiment becomes heavily skewed toward one direction, unexpected weakness can trigger position unwinds.
Even so, current positioning indicated that traders viewed recent weakness as a temporary setback rather than the beginning of a broader decline.
Ethereum tested resistance as MACD strengthened
Ethereum tested a key resistance area after recovering from its June decline. The daily chart showed ETH trading near $1,750 after rebounding from support around $1,562.
Price briefly pushed toward the $1,800 resistance level before encountering selling pressure and retreating lower.
Technical indicators improved throughout the recovery phase. The MACD maintained a bullish crossover, with the MACD line remaining above the signal line.
In addition, green histogram bars expanded, showing that buying strength improved compared to previous sessions.
ETH also held above the $1,720 support zone, helping preserve the short-term recovery structure.
Nevertheless, the asset remained below the critical $1,800 resistance level. That barrier continued acting as the most important obstacle for buyers.
If ETH breaks and holds above $1,800, buyers could target the next major resistance near $2,000.
However, failure to reclaim that level could encourage another retest of support around $1,720 and potentially $1,562.
Final Summary
- Whale activity and Open Interest declined while bullish trader positioning remained elevated.
- ETH held above key support, though $1,800 continued limiting recovery progress.