Ethereum News Today: Ether Surges 50% in July to Six-Month High of $3,700

Ether prices surged on July 18, reaching a six-month high of approximately $3,700. This significant rally marked the highest value for the cryptocurrency since early January, with Ether trading at $3,677.40 during the day. The cryptocurrency has experienced a strong performance throughout the month, with prices increasing by more than 50% from a low of around $2,400 at the beginning of July.

Analysts attributed the recent gains to several factors, including legislative developments such as the approval of the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins (GENIUS Act). This regulatory clarity has boosted investor sentiment, particularly as Ethereum plays a central role in the stablecoin ecosystem. Additionally, the filing by BlackRock to allow staking of Ethereum in their iShares Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHA) has contributed to the bullish momentum.

Doug Colkitt, a founding contributor at Fogo, highlighted that Ethereum is benefiting from both structural and speculative drivers. The rally is partly fueled by renewed momentum across decentralized finance (DeFi) and tokenized assets, which continue to build atop Ethereum’s infrastructure. With Bitcoin dominance stretched, investors are rotating into other major cryptocurrencies like Ether, which offer strong narratives, robust developer activity, and room for growth. If progress on Ethereum ETFs continues, Ethereum could be on the verge of a new capital influx cycle.

Mike Cahill, CEO of Douro Labs, noted that Ethereum is catching a wave of renewed institutional interest, driven by broader tailwinds from ETF optimism and a rotation into high-beta assets. Underneath the surface, there is growing traction in the tokenization and Layer 2 (L2) space, both of which are Ethereum-native narratives. As institutions begin allocating capital across more than just Bitcoin, Ethereum is naturally the next step, especially given its programmability and network effects across both DeFi and real-world assets (RWAs).

Joe DiPasquale, CEO of cryptocurrency hedge fund manager BitBull Capital, cited record inflows into spot ETH ETFs as a key factor in Ether’s rally toward $3,700. Institutional investors are showing renewed conviction, and regulatory clarity from the GENIUS Act is boosting sentiment. Additionally, whale accumulation and a strong technical breakout are contributing to a surge that appears more sustainable than past speculative runs.

Greg Magadini, director of derivatives for digital asset data provider Amberdata, focused on staking activity as a significant driver. He emphasized that the current ETH staking rate is the highest ever seen, with about 30% of all ETH now staked. As staking rates increase, the available liquid ETH remaining to trade is reduced, leading to a smaller tradable float. This phenomenon, combined with ETH ETF inflows, corporate treasury allocations, and a long-term underperformance of ETH, results in an explosive upside move. Magadini also noted that regulatory clarity and prospects for stablecoin adoption are great catalysts for investment demand in ETH and other Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) based chains.

Julio Moreno, head of research for CryptoQuant, highlighted that investors are rotating their capital from Bitcoin into altcoins, including Ether. This rotation is driven by the undervalued levels of altcoins compared to Bitcoin. Purchases of ETH from US-based ETFs have outperformed purchases of Bitcoin, as evidenced by the increasing ratio of ETH to Bitcoin holdings in these ETFs. A similar dynamic can be observed in the relative spot trading volume ratio for these coins, indicating higher growth in ETH trading activity than in Bitcoin.