Ethereum: Whales make rare moves, derivative market reacts
- 300,000 ETH, worth around $488 million, were recently moved.
- ETH’s weighted average was oscillating between positive and negative at press time.
Ethereum [ETH] recently witnessed two whale transactions – a rare occurrence after months of relative inactivity. Although these transactions may not directly influence the price of ETH, how did the derivatives market respond?
Read Ethereum’s [ETH] Price Prediction 2023-24
Ethereum’s transaction volume spikes
A recent report from Santiment highlighted significant whale activity in the Ethereum network. Notably, on 5 September, there were two substantial transactions involving 150,000 ETH each.
These tokens were transferred to the Coinbase exchange, totaling approximately $488 million.
? #Ethereum has seen two separate whale transfers to #Coinbase, each worth 150K $ETH. Among the largest of 2023, this is the highest #onchain transaction spike since June 13. The reasons for these moves are unknown, and may not necessarily impact price. https://t.co/pvsry8QTi5 pic.twitter.com/uSFqdxCf5c
— Santiment (@santimentfeed) September 4, 2023
What’s particularly noteworthy was that these transactions triggered a notable surge of over 800,00 in transaction volume, per Santiment. As of this writing, the transaction volume was around 116,000.
Additional information revealed that both these transactions originated from Coinbase’s cold wallet addresses. Furthermore, the ETH was distributed across multiple addresses, with each transaction involving 4,282 ETH.
ETH flashes bear signals
Analyzing Ethereum’s daily timeframe chart revealed a lack of significant price movements. As of this writing, the volume trend appeared stable, and ETH was trading at approximately $1,635.
It showed a modest profit of less than 1%, a slight departure from the less than 1% losses it had encountered in recent trading sessions.
However, Ethereum remained entrenched in a bearish trend, as indicated by its Relative Strength Index (RSI). As of this writing, the RSI stood below 40, signaling the continuation of bearish market sentiment.
Ethereum long and short positions slug it out
According to Coinglass, there was an ongoing struggle between long and short-position traders in the Ethereum market. The weighted funding rate chart initially displayed a positive funding rate at a certain time.
However, as of this writing, the funding rate had turned slightly negative. This shift suggested that derivative traders were still undecided on whether Ethereum would rise or fall in value.
How much are 1,10,100 ETHs worth today?
It’s worth noting that the ultimate direction of the funding rate by the end of 5 September would play a pivotal role in determining the prevailing market sentiment. The sentiment was evenly balanced at press time, with neither long nor short traders decisively dominating the market.
The recent whale move might be an exchange or market-maker move from all indications. This meant that the large volume of Ethereum moved might be an exchange or a market-maker moving its holdings into different wallets.