After months of lagging behind Bitcoin, ETH has come roaring back to life. Now the market is asking a bold question, can ETH surge to $10,000 before the end of the year?
It may sound far-fetched, but beneath the noise, something serious is brewing. ETF demand is rising fast, corporate treasuries are piling in, and capital is rotating out of Bitcoin at scale.
The momentum is real. And for the first time in years, Ethereum is once again at the centre of the crypto conversation.
Let’s see why ETH might just be on track for a breakout of historic proportions, and what could still derail it.
A Wave of Euphoria, or the Start of a Long-Awaited Altseason?
Ethereum’s recent rally has reignited talk of an altseason, and this time the signals are stronger than usual.
Over the past three months, ETH has soared more than 110%, reaching $3,732. It’s up 67% in the past 30 days alone, and 43% in just the last two weeks. Compare that to Bitcoin’s modest climb, and it’s clear where the market’s attention is going.
This price action has been accompanied by growing whale activity. More than 500,000 ETH have been accumulated by large holders in just two weeks, according to analyst Ali Martinez.
On social media, Ethereum’s dominance is surging, with conversations about ETH nearing their highest levels this year.
CryptoQuant’s data confirms this trend, showing that altcoin volume on Binance Futures recently hit $100.7 billion, the highest since February.
Ethereum is leading the pack, with Solana and XRP trailing behind. The market’s capital is rotating, and ETH is becoming the top alternative to BTC.
At the same time, Bitcoin’s dominance has slipped below 59%, down from 67% in recent weeks. Ethereum’s share, by contrast, has grown to 11.2%.
According to Swissblock analysts, this is exactly the kind of setup that marks the beginning of altseasons: when Bitcoin stalls and altcoins start to break out, capital tends to follow quickly.
But not everyone is convinced this surge will last. Santiment, a well-known market intelligence firm, has sounded a cautionary note.
They argue that crowd belief in altseasons often leads to volatility, not stability. Historically, strong upward movements in crypto tend to occur when investors are uncertain or sceptical, not when they are fully convinced the party has started.
Their warning is echoed by other market watchers, who see signs that some investors are already scaling back Bitcoin exposure in favour of altcoins. This behaviour can drive quick gains, but also leaves the market vulnerable to sharp corrections if sentiment turns.
Technically speaking, ETH is approaching a critical zone. The asset has tried, and failed, twice to break above $3,800 over the past week. With the all-time high of $4,878 still 23% away, Ethereum has room to run. But this area could prove a tough ceiling unless momentum continues to build.
Despite this, the mood on Crypto Twitter is heating up. “CT’s heating up. Charts stirring. Just one spark away,” posted analyst Chyan. That spark might come from one key factor: demand shock.
The Case for $10,000: Demand Is Outpacing Supply at a Staggering Rate
The most compelling argument for a $10,000 Ethereum lies not in social sentiment, but in pure numbers. Since mid-May, institutional investors and corporate treasuries have bought an estimated 2.83 million ETH. That is equivalent to more than $10 billion at today’s prices.
According to Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan, this buying frenzy is just getting started. He believes that most investors are still underweight in Ethereum compared to Bitcoin, and that ETPs and treasuries could easily purchase another $20 billion worth of ETH in the next 12 months. At current prices, that would be 5.33 million ETH.
Now here’s the catch. Ethereum’s supply issuance over the next year is projected to be just 800,000 ETH. That creates a 7-to-1 demand-to-supply ratio, one of the most bullish supply-demand imbalances the network has ever seen.
This is why Hougan compares Ethereum’s current moment to what happened with Bitcoin in late 2023 and early 2024. Back then, spot Bitcoin ETFs drove consistent demand, helping BTC push to new highs. Now, Ethereum ETFs are beginning to follow suit.
Just this week, spot ETH ETFs recorded $534 million in daily inflows, the third-largest single-day figure since their launch.
BlackRock’s ETHA fund led the charge, pulling in $426 million in a single day and pushing its total assets beyond $10 billion. That fund alone now controls 2.24% of Ethereum’s total circulating supply.
Other ETFs are seeing similar momentum. Fidelity’s FETH added $35 million, while Grayscale’s fund brought in $72 million. In contrast, Bitcoin ETFs saw net outflows of nearly $68 million on the same day, a sign that the market’s appetite is shifting.
The reason behind this institutional interest goes beyond price speculation. Ethereum’s infrastructure is increasingly being used for real-world applications.
More than half of all tokenised assets are now built on Ethereum. Major firms, such as JPMorgan, Visa, and BlackRock, are utilising the network for a range of applications, including tokenised treasuries and equity settlements.
Robinhood recently announced tokenised stock offerings on Ethereum’s layer-2 network, Arbitrum. As regulatory clarity improves around staking within ETFs, products offering staking rewards like stETH may become more common, offering both yield and liquidity to institutions.
Arthur Hayes summed it up bluntly in his latest blog post: “The coming Ether bull run is about to tear the market a new asshole.”
He expects ETH to hit $10,000 by the end of the year, driven by unstoppable institutional demand and Ethereum’s central role in the financialisation of real-world assets.
Conclusion
Ethereum’s momentum is impossible to ignore. With ETF inflows accelerating, whales accumulating, and corporate treasuries treating ETH as a core holding, the fundamentals behind this rally look stronger than ever.
But the path to $10,000 will not be easy. Volatility remains a real threat, especially with so many eyes now on Ethereum. The market may need to cool off before its next leg up.
Still, if demand continues to outpace supply by this wide a margin, and if Ethereum continues to be the preferred network for tokenisation, DeFi, and institutional infrastructure, then $10,000 is not just a dream. It may be a matter of time.