Ether price reaches 3K but traders remain cautious on sustained rally

Ethereum (CRYPTO:ETH)'s price surged 13.5% over two days, hitting $3,000, yet key indicators suggest uncertainty about whether this level will hold.

Despite inflows into spot ETFs and rising total value locked (TVL) on the Ethereum network, futures and options markets reveal hesitation among professional traders.

The monthly futures premium for Ether stands at 5%, a slight improvement from 3.5% the previous week, but still near neutral to bearish territory.

The last significant bullish signal was in late January when Ether traded above $3,300.

Ethereum’s layer-2 solutions have seen growth, with $58.6 billion in decentralised exchange volumes over 30 days, but this has not translated into increased demand for ETH or sustained price momentum.

Network fees on Ethereum have declined by 22% to $34.8 million in the past month, reducing the burn rate of ETH and putting downward pressure on its price.

This contrasts with other blockchains like Solana (CRYPTO:SOL) and Tron (CRYPTO:TRX), which have higher relative network fees despite lower TVL.

TVL on Ethereum increased from $50 billion to $73 billion over three months, but trading volumes on decentralised exchanges have dropped to a nine-month low.

Options market data show balanced interest between bullish and bearish strategies, with the ETH options skew at -3%, a slight improvement from +1% the previous week.

The recent price gains were largely driven by a net inflow of $468 million into US-listed ETFs over four days, alongside institutional purchases by companies such as ShapLink Gaming and Bit Digital.

However, it remains uncertain if institutional demand will continue, as derivatives markets reflect limited conviction in a sustained rally.

At the time of reporting, Ethereum price was $2,939.03.