Ethereum Plunges Below $3,000 – Is This the Start of a Bear Market?

• Ethereum dropped below $3,000 on Friday morning amid a massive whale selloff.
• The current pullback has plunged ETH into the Q1/Q2 low levels of 2024.
• Long-term holders consider the pullback an opportunity to buy ETH at a cheaper price.

Ethereum fell below the psychologically significant $3,000 mark on Friday, driven by large transfers to exchanges by Ethereum whales along with broader market weakness. The decline has sparked concerns among investors and renewed discussions about the cryptocurrency’s short-term prospects, even as long-term holders view the dip as a buying opportunity.

Whale Alert, a prominent blockchain tracker, reported that Ethereum whales transferred significant amounts of ETH to centralized exchanges (CEXs), further pressuring the falling ETH price.

Whale Alert identified an Ethereum whale moving 10,351 ETH, valued at over $30.1 million, from an unknown wallet to Binance early Friday morning. Hours later, another large transaction of 9,600 ETH, worth over $27.5 million, moved from an unknown wallet to Coinbase.

These transactions, characteristic of bearish activity in a declining market, coincide with similar trends in other major cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin. The German government’s recent Bitcoin selloff has exacerbated the current market turmoil, contributing to the overall crypto market decline.

The ongoing pullback has pushed ETH to levels last seen in the first and second quarters of 2024, retesting the $2,810 support level. TradingView data shows ETH briefly touched $2,809 early Friday, marking a 19.74% drop since the beginning of the week and a loss of over 29% in the past six weeks.

Despite the price drop, long-term holders view the current pullback as a buying opportunity to accumulate more digital assets at reduced prices. Many anticipate that fundamental factors, such as the expected approval of spot Ethereum ETFs, will attract significant capital into the crypto market, particularly into ETH. This influx is expected to trigger a bull run, driving Ethereum’s price higher and generating positive sentiment throughout the market.