Ethereum Price Targets $12,000 as Investors Shift from Bitcoin

A prominent analyst has made a bold prediction regarding the price of Ethereum, forecasting that the cryptocurrency will reach $5,500 in the short term and surge to $12,000 by the end of the year. This optimistic outlook is driven by Ethereum's strong performance this year, which has prompted a shift in investment focus from Bitcoin to Ethereum among investors.

The analyst highlighted that Ethereum serves as the foundational blockchain infrastructure for traditional finance, supporting over $145 billion in stablecoin supply. This significant market dominance positions Ethereum as one of the largest macro investment opportunities for the next decade. Consequently, investment managers and retail investors have been systematically reallocating funds from Bitcoin to Ethereum, with an average daily swap volume of $900 million.

A separate analysis echoed this sentiment, noting that the capital flow into Ethereum-based funds has been increasing. The analyst pointed out that from a regulatory arbitrage perspective, companies holding Ethereum have greater expansion potential compared to those holding Bitcoin.

The analyst set the ultimate price target for Ethereum between $12,000 and $16,000, comparing the current situation to Bitcoin's surge in 2017, when its price increased by 13 times. In that year, the analyst had predicted that Bitcoin would reach $55,000, which was met with skepticism at the time, given that Bitcoin was trading at around $2,000. This prediction later gained attention as Bitcoin's price soared.

A cryptocurrency analyst noted that the current prediction for Ethereum is unprecedented. Previously, the analyst had provided investment analysis for a mining company, which led to the acquisition of Ethereum worth $21.28 million, increasing its total holdings to 1.72 million Ethereum, valued at $7.65 billion. If Ethereum reaches $12,000, the mining company could surpass a major digital asset financial company, becoming the largest publicly traded digital asset financial company globally.

The analyst added that since June, Ethereum and Ethereum ETFs have absorbed nearly 5% of the funds, marking the fastest rate of capital inflow in the history of cryptocurrencies, surpassing Bitcoin's accumulation pace by the end of 2024. This recent surge in accumulation indicates the early stages of a broader accumulation cycle, with asset management companies potentially controlling up to 10% of all circulating Ethereum. Given that companies have announced a target of 5% of the circulating supply, there is still room for further accumulation, providing strong support for Ethereum's price.