Key takeaways:
ETH price rallied by 22% on May 8, but demand for spot ETH ETFs and derivatives remains muted.
President Trump’s reversal on certain altcoins aligns with ETH’s renewed outlook.
Ether (ETH) posted an impressive 29% gain between May 8 and May 9, likely marking the end of a 10-week bear market that bottomed out at $1,385 on April 9. This sharp move triggered the liquidation of over $400 million in short (sell) ETH futures positions, suggesting that whales and market makers were caught off guard.
Despite the surge, traders have maintained a neutral stance in ETH derivatives. Whether this apparent lack of conviction reflects a genuine trend reversal or merely precedes another test of the $2,000 level remains to be seen.
The ETH futures premium has yet to exceed the 5% threshold typically associated with a neutral market, indicating that demand for leveraged bullish positions remains notably limited. ETH’s continued underperformance—trailing the altcoin market capitalization by 17% in 2025—helps explain the prevailing lack of investor confidence.
Some analysts interpret this as an opening for further short covering, while others contend that Ethereum’s core fundamentals have yet to improve meaningfully.
Irrespective of Ether’s price action, recent network upgrades have notably enhanced layer-2 scalability. More importantly, they have helped solidify Ethereum’s position as the leading platform in terms of decentralization and security. This is reflected in Ethereum’s total value locked (TVL), which stands at $64 billion. For comparison, the three largest direct competitors—Solana, BNB Chain, and Tron—collectively hold a total value locked (TVL) of $22.3 billion.
The limited demand for spot Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs) has emerged as a key warning sign. Even Ether’s strongest single-day price performance in four years failed to prevent a third consecutive day of net outflows, according to data from Farside Investors. On May 8 alone, US-listed Ether spot ETFs experienced net outflows totaling $16 million.
The muted enthusiasm following Ether’s recent bullish momentum can be partly attributed to the sharp 85% drop in Ethereum network fees from January to April. Reduced network activity lowers overall demand for ETH and negatively affects net staking yields, as the protocol’s burn mechanism relies on competition for data processing.
ETH options markets also offer insight into whether whales and market makers anticipate further downside risks.
Currently, put (sell) options are trading at similar levels to equivalent call (buy) options, indicating a neutral sentiment. This outcome is somewhat discouraging for Ether bulls. Nevertheless, Ether could regain market attention after US President Donald Trump reversed his position following earlier public endorsements of competing altcoins.
Related: Ether clocks ‘insane’ 20% candle post Pectra — A turning point?
According to a Politico report published on May 8, President Trump felt he had been “used” and had severed ties with the lobbyist who reportedly proposed the idea of a strategic crypto reserve. While Trump’s social media post on March 2 specifically mentioned Solana (SOL), Cardano (ADA), and XRP, the subsequent March 6 “Digital Asset Stockpile” Executive Order struck a much more reserved tone.
Despite the evident apathy in both the Ether derivatives market and spot ETF flows, a rally toward the $2,700 level remains plausible—especially if investor sentiment shifts in response to the failed lobbying efforts undertaken by some of Ethereum’s competitors.
This article is for general information purposes and is not intended to be and should not be taken as legal or investment advice. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed here are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.
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