ETH could revisit $1,500 or bounce as macro pressures ease to target $3,000.
Ethereum price is struggling to break above $2,000 as losses seen over the weekend extend into early US trading hours on Monday.
Bitcoin fell to below $65,000, ETH dropped to $1,848, and Solana pared gains to under $80.
The sell-off across crypto has accelerated in recent weeks amid negative sentiment, resulting in huge capital outflows from crypto-related investment products.
Downside pressure for BTC has cascaded into top altcoins, and the latest down move for ETH coincides with losses for US equity futures ahead of opening on Monday, February 23, 2026.
Risk-off sentiment has flared after an initial risk-on outlook hit markets amid the US Supreme Court’s decision on President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
The dump for top coins alludes to overall weakness, and one indicator of this trajectory is the fifth consecutive week of net outflows from digital asset investment products.
Ethereum hit over $36 million in weekly outflows last week, bringing month-to-date flows to -$117 million and year-to-date flows to over $494 million.
That marked a fifth consecutive week of outflows and coincides with ETH struggling to decisively breach the $2k level.
ETH’s slump below $2k aligns with institutional selling and macro and geopolitical risks.
According to analysts at QCP, investors have priced in new tariff risks as well as geopolitical tensions, and ETH has shown weakness similar to BTC.
ETH has witnessed nearly $500 million in ETF outflows year-to-date, but rather than being bearish about it, analysts say outflows mirror trade unwinds and are not a “structural exit”.
“Options still show a downside bias in both $BTC and $ETH, but skew is less extreme, suggesting positioning is cleaner and panic hedging has eased. ETF outflows also appear more consistent with trade unwinds than a structural exit,” QCP posted on X.
Short-term price movement for ETH may also align with whale selling, with Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin among those who have recently sold ETH.
Crypto Rover says “large ETH whales are underwater,” and previous instances have historically highlighted bottoms.
Despite this, some crypto treasury companies, led by Bitmine, have doubled down on the altcoin as they weigh the “buy-the-dip” opportunity.
Whales who sold earlier, like ShapeShift founder Erik Voorhees, are also buying ETH again.
As such, there’s a possibility the coin may fail to reclaim and hold above the psychological level, risking further declines to the $1,500 level.
However, recovery for Bitcoin to above $74,000 could signal a shift in broader market sentiment. Ethereum will target $2,300-$3,000 as initial supply wall risk areas.
