Ethereum News Today: Ethereum's Descent Tests Resilience Amid 2026 Upgrade Hopes

Ethereum faces mounting pressure as key price barriers test the resilience of the second-largest cryptocurrency, with market analysts and corporate treasuries navigating a volatile landscape shaped by macroeconomic headwinds and technical inflection points. The asset has slid to a four-month low of $2,700, according to CoinGecko, as liquidity crunches and leveraged positions unwind following a historic liquidation event in October.

The downward spiral has hit major Ethereum holders like BitMine, which reported a 52% stock price drop over the past month amid declining crypto valuations. The company, which owns 3.55 million ETH, disclosed a $1.8 billion decline in its Ethereum holdings as prices fell from $3,600 to $2,700 since July. BitMine's recent earnings report, which included a $328 million annual income and a one-cent-per-share dividend, failed to stabilize its shares, which traded at $24.65 on Friday. Meanwhile, institutional Ethereum staking activity remains muted, with the firm delaying material staking of its holdings until its "Made in America" validator network launches in early 2026.

Technical indicators paint a bearish picture for ETH, with the price testing critical support at $2,850. According to FXStreet analysts, a break below this level could push the token toward $2,300, while recovery above $3,100 would be needed to retest the 20-day EMA and target $3,470. The Relative Strength Index and Stochastic Oscillator have entered oversold territory, hinting at potential short-term reversals, but broader market conditions remain fragile. Over the past 24 hours, $170 million in ETH futures were liquidated, with $142.8 million attributed to long positions.

Macro-level challenges persist as Ethereum's dominance in the crypto market wanes. Bitcoin's share of total market capitalization has climbed to 53.2%, with Ethereum's ETH/BTC ratio hitting a seven-month low of 0.052. This shift reflects institutional preferences for Bitcoin as a "safety play" amid tightening liquidity and leveraged position resets. Open interest in ETH futures has declined by 7% week-on-week to $6.7 billion, the largest outflow since July, while funding rates have normalized after a November spike.

Despite these headwinds, Ethereum's long-term fundamentals remain intact. The upcoming Dencun upgrade, expected in early 2026, promises to slash transaction costs via EIP-4844 ("proto-danksharding"), enhancing scalability for decentralized finance (DeFi) and enterprise applications. This upgrade is seen as a catalyst for broader adoption, particularly as real-world asset (RWA) tokenization on Ethereum exceeds $7.4 billion in value.

Layer 2 networks like Arbitrum, Optimism, and Base are also reshaping Ethereum's ecosystem, processing millions of daily transactions and reducing mainnet congestion. While these platforms ease fees and expand accessibility, Yahoo Finance notes that Layer 2s have driven DeFi and NFT growth but may redirect transaction fees away from the mainnet.

In a bid to stimulate Ethereum activity, MEXC launched a $1 million "Ethereum Eco Month" campaign, offering zero-fee trading, staking rewards of up to 600% APR, and luxury prizes like gold bars and iPhones. The initiative targets both retail and institutional users, leveraging Ethereum's expanding ecosystem to offset near-term price pressures.