Ethereum falls below $4,000, down over 4% intraday.

Ethereum falls below $4,000, down over 4% intraday.

Ethereum (ETH) experienced a significant drop in price on September 12, 2025, falling below the $4,000 mark and recording a more than 4% intraday decline. The altcoin king's price has been influenced by conflicting market forces, with strong investor activity and accumulation from both retail and institutional players, but also facing selling pressure from long-term holders .

The Ethereum exchange supply has been on a steady decline for months, reaching a nine-year low. This trend suggests investors are withdrawing tokens from centralized platforms, a move often linked to long-term accumulation strategies rather than short-term speculation . In just the past month, over 2.7 million ETH, valued at over $11.3 billion, has been accumulated by investors, highlighting strong conviction in Ethereum’s long-term potential .

Despite this bullish accumulation, Ethereum's Liveliness metric has been trending upward. This metric measures the behavior of long-term holders (LTHs), and an increase typically suggests these investors are selling rather than accumulating. This selling from LTHs counters the bullish pressure from fresh inflows, resulting in Ethereum being caught between two opposing market forces .

Ethereum's price currently stands at $4,176, just above the critical $4,074 support zone. The immediate resistance lies at $4,222, which ETH must break to attempt further recovery. Given the conflicting signals, ETH is likely to remain consolidated within a macro range between $4,000 and $4,500. However, if long-term holder selling continues to weigh heavily, ETH could fall further. A breakdown below $4,027 support would leave ETH vulnerable to a decline toward $3,910, invalidating the bullish thesis .

The recent decline in Ethereum's price comes amid broader market conditions where Ethereum experienced $516.3 million in futures liquidations over the past 24 hours, with $489.6 million attributed to long liquidations. ETH saw a 7% decline over the past 24 hours, plunging below the 50-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) for the first time in over two months. The top altcoin is testing the support around $4,000, a level that bulls defended following a similar decline in mid-August .

The decline in Ethereum's price has also been influenced by the actions of Ethereum treasury company BitMine. BitMine purchased 264,378 ETH, worth about $1.1 billion, last week, boosting its holdings to 2.4 million ETH. The company entered a $365 million purchase agreement and issued a $913 million stock warrant. Despite this, BitMine shares fell nearly 10% following the announcement, aligning with a broader decline in the cryptocurrency market and related stocks .

In conclusion, Ethereum's price drop below $4,000 reflects the ongoing struggle between bullish and bearish pressures in the market. The altcoin remains vulnerable to further price swings, with the potential for consolidation or a more significant correction depending on the continued activity of long-term holders and the broader market conditions.