ETH stagnates at $2,700 - Is the 2023 pattern repeating?

Ethereum Whale (ETH) may be quietly returning, especially on the Binance exchange.

After a period of stagnation in the context of sideways prices, new on-chain signals indicate that large investors are gradually returning to the market.

In early May, when ETH began to recover, whale activity surged to 10,000 transactions per day. However, as the price started to stabilize, this number dropped sharply to around 3,000.

However, the current situation seems to be changing.

According to analysis from CryptoQuant expert Dark Frost, Ethereum whales have returned to Binance, as evidenced by the average order size index.

This index has "turned on" for the first time since December 2023 – the time just before ETH surged from $2,200 to $4,000.

Whale orders increase and net cash flow shifts to optimistic

Source: CryptoQuantIn fact, since May 19, Whale orders on Binance have started to appear again, reflecting an increase in confidence in the market.

This is particularly important because whales often act early when macro trends begin to show signs of strengthening.

Therefore, this index change indicates that large institutions on Binance are currently buying ETH.

Source: IntoTheBlockWhen observing the total capital inflow from whales, it can be seen that ETH whales have purchased a total of 301,000 ETH tokens. The net money flow index from large holders surged from a negative value to 108,000 ETH, meaning that whales are buying more than selling.

Spot buyers dominate as retail investors enter the market

Alongside the buying wave of whales, other investors in the market are also actively accumulating ETH. In fact, smaller investors are following the upward trend. Data from the spot market shows that the Accumulated Volume Divergence index (CVD) reached +6.350 ETH – meaning buyers are dominant. In total, buyers have accumulated 57.300 ETH, completely overshadowing sellers.

Source: CryptoQuantAlong with the increasing buying pressure from large holders, the amount of ETH sent to exchanges has decreased significantly.

Since reaching a positive level of 42,000 ETH four days ago, the Net Flow index on the exchange has continuously decreased and remained in the negative zone throughout this period.

Negative net flow implies that the amount of ETH withdrawn from the exchange far exceeds the amount deposited, reflecting a strong accumulation process that is underway.

Source: IntoTheBlock## How does it affect ETH?

Although the ETH whales have returned to the Binance exchange, their activity has not yet positively impacted price fluctuations.

As of the time of writing, ETH is trading at $2,508, down 1.3% on the day. This marks the fourth consecutive decline, indicating that selling pressure remains.

Thus, the top altcoin by market capitalization is still in a strong tug-of-war between the bulls and the bears in the market.

In fact, the sideways price movement in the range of $2,400 to $2,700 reflects that the market is stuck in a "tug-of-war". The buying pressure from whales is absorbing the selling volume, but it still hasn't been able to break through the resistance zone.

Therefore, even though the buying force is strong, the selling force is not lagging behind. Thus, until the buyers not only absorb the selling pressure but also surpass it, the market will continue to be stuck in the current price range.

If that happens, a breakout above the $2,700 mark will occur.

Minh Anh