Recently, Ethereum whales have made headlines by accumulating $1 billion in Ether (ETH). This raises some interesting questions about whether we might see a price target of $5,000 soon.
Right now, Ether is the only coin in the top 10 by market cap that has a negative return over the past month. Crowd sentiment is dropping week by week. This situation calls for a bullish turnaround, and on-chain data suggests it could happen sooner rather than later.
According to crypto analyst MAXPAIN, addresses holding between 1,000 and 10,000 ETH have collectively added over 330,000 ETH since January 7. That’s worth about $1.08 billion. This level of accumulation hasn’t been seen since April 2024, when the same group acquired over 620,000 ETH, leading to a 66% price increase.
We’re also seeing an uptick in daily active addresses, with network growth hitting 180,000. This could signal fresh capital inflows. However, on-chain analyst Percival from CryptoQuant pointed out a significant drop in ETH spot market transactions. Volumes fell from $52 billion in January 2021 to just $8 billion in 2025. That’s an 84% decrease. So, while whales are accumulating ETH, retail interest has taken a hit during this bullish phase.
Traders are now eyeing an inverse head-and-shoulders pattern, which might indicate a price increase for ETH. Jelle, a long-term crypto investor, noted this bullish setup along with ascending triangles on the weekly chart. This suggests a higher chance of a breakout.
Alec, a derivatives trader, mentioned that Ether is tightening on both the 30-minute and 1-day time frames. This indicates that a significant price movement could be on the horizon.
Market analyst Cold Blooded Shiller commented on the current industry sentiment toward Ethereum, predicting a price of $5,000 by March. But for ETH to reach that target, it needs to overcome immediate resistance at $4,100. Since 2024, Ethereum has managed to break above a descending trendline twice, but it hasn’t yet breached that $4,100 resistance.
To aim for $5,000, Ethereum needs to flip the $4,100 level into support on daily and weekly charts. If it can hold above this level, a rally to $5,000 could be possible. Until then, the altcoin has to navigate through bearish pressures.