Cryptos slow down; Ethereum optimism after Shanghai upgrade´s completed
The cryptocurrency market starts the week with cold feet. Bitcoin (BTC) has lost more than 1% in the last 24 hours and is back below $30,000. For its part, Ethereum (ETH) is practically flat, but remains stuck at $2,100.
For months there was speculation that the Shanghai upgrade could sink the price of the market's largest altcoin. Following its completion, it has emerged that ETH has done better than any optimist might have expected and went on to surpass $2,140, an 11-month high, once the upgrade was completed. According to Sean Farrell, head of digital asset strategy at FundStrat, "the market's pessimism regarding Ethereum staking withdrawals proved excessive."
This seems to be validated by the data. According to figures from beachoncha.in, there were withdrawals of 1.03 million ETH from 473,700 applications... but most are staking their Ethereum again. "Much of the stake that has been withdrawn over the last few days is actually going straight back into The Beacon Chain as validators are looking to compound their interest. So much so that net stake is currently increasing," Lachlan Feeney, CEO of consultancy Labrys, reported to 'CoinTelegraph'.
According to the expert, many validators have wanted to profit from their bet after more than 30 months of waiting, although they still see the potential in ETH's staking. "Because Shapella/Shanghai is a massive de-risking event, over the medium to long-term more, not less, ETH will be staked. We anticipate that in the not too distant future, we will reach a record high of Ether being staked," he added.
For his part, Markus Thielen, research director at digital asset firm Matrixport, believes that the SEC's sanction on Kraken will also have a bullish effect on Ethereum´s price. According to Thielen, a significant amount of Kraken's unstaked ETH will be recycled through other entities, while increasing interest in Ethereum from institutional investors.
As for Bitcoin, the reigning cryptocurrency continues to look good technically. According to César Nuez, technical analyst at Bolsamania, there could be an attack on $32,000 in the coming weeks, although the price could be supported at $29,000 before continuing its upward climb.
"The key support to watch is at $26,520. We will only see a technical complication with the abandonment of this price level," the expert explained.
In the rest of the market, there have been mixed signs. The strong rises in Solana (SOL, +4%) and Dogecoin (DOGE, +3.9%) are contrasted by falls of 2% in Cardano (ADA) and 1% in Ripple (XRP).