Ethereum Surges 30% in 48 Hours After Pectra Upgrade

Crypto markets experienced a rally this week, with Bitcoin reclaiming $100K. On Friday, Ethereum (ETH) emerged as the standout performer, gaining over 15% in a 24-hour period. Despite this surge, ETH has yet to approach a new high for the year, unlike Bitcoin and Solana.

Over the past two years, Ethereum's price has trailed behind Bitcoin. However, in the past two days, ETH has outperformed BTC and other major coins. Analysts attribute this to a successful technical upgrade and positive signs about the global economy. They believe that Ethereum may have significant upside potential after facing concerns about its network's speed and efficiency.

Joel Kruger, a market strategist at a financial technology firm, stated that the market is ready to reward ETH as it overcomes internal challenges, layer-1 competition, and first-quarter risk-off pressures. With the Ethereum Foundation advancing upgrades and a favorable global macro risk environment, investors are taking advantage of heavily discounted prices.

On Thursday, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization surpassed the $2,000 threshold and later reached $2,400 early Friday, hitting its highest level in more than three months. ETH, which was recently settled at $2,337, has gained 30% over the past 48 hours, while Bitcoin has risen 8%.

These gains, part of an upswing in markets since early April, accelerated on Wednesday after the Pectra upgrade. This upgrade aims to improve the Ethereum network's scalability and user-friendliness. Pre-launch testing of the upgrade encountered some issues, but these were resolved in time for the mainnet launch, which went smoothly.

Ethereum has faced increasing competition from Solana and other layer-1 networks, whose proponents claim are more capable than ETH. However, enthusiasm for Ethereum grew after this week's flawless rollout of the Pectra upgrade, the biggest technical milestone since the merge. The upgrade, combined with broader crypto tailwinds fueled by encouraging macro headlines, is driving the rally.

This was the second major improvement in three years for Ethereum, following the 2022 merge, which transitioned the network from a proof-of-work blockchain to a proof-of-stake blockchain. Meanwhile, the U.S. President this week appeared to ease trade tensions, signing a deal with the U.K. and suggesting plans to lower tariffs with China. Risk-on assets responded positively, with major indexes jumping on Thursday, including the tech-heavy Nasdaq and S&P 500.

Amberdata's Director of Derivatives noted that ETH last week was experiencing less volatility, and increased buying could lead to a "relief rally"—when negative news tends to be more positive than previously interpreted. Despite this week's spike, Ethereum remains considerably down from its 2021 record of $4,878. Bitcoin, meanwhile, is only down 5% from its own peak price set back in January.