XRP news today: Two Prime Drops ETH Support Amid 45% Year-to-Date Decline

In the first quarter of 2025, Ether's price has faced significant challenges, leading a US-based investment advisory firm, Two Prime, to discontinue support for ETH and adopt a Bitcoin-only strategy. The firm, which had lent $1.5 billion in loans for both Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) over the past 15 months, announced on May 1 that it would focus solely on BTC asset management and lending. Two Prime cited ETH's statistical trading behavior, value proposition, and community culture as reasons for the shift, stating that these aspects have deteriorated to a point where engagement is no longer worthwhile.

This strategic move by Two Prime comes as ETH has experienced a 45% drop in value year-to-date. Some market participants are optimistic that ETH may be nearing its bottom and could soon reverse its negative trend. Two Prime, an algorithmic trading firm, emphasized the importance of data over narratives, noting that the data suggests ETH has fundamentally changed. The firm argued that ETH has become unpredictable, trading more like a memecoin rather than a stable asset. This unpredictability poses challenges for both algorithmic trading and ETH-backed lending, as the asset no longer behaves within expected volatility parameters.

Founded in 2019 by Alexander Blum and Marc Fleury, Two Prime is registered with the US Securities and Exchange Commission and has offered trading and lending services for both BTC and ETH for the past six years. The firm's critical remarks about Ether sparked a range of responses from the community, with some viewing the comments as a potential bottom signal for the cryptocurrency. Market observers questioned the relevance of Two Prime's shifting approach to Ether, while others speculated that the price of ETH could bounce back following the downtrend.

Two Prime also highlighted the weak performance of Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs), noting that BTC ETF buying has outpaced ETH by almost 24 times. The firm suggested that the failure of ETH's ETF creates a reflexive loop where institutions like BlackRock allocate fewer resources to its promotion and sale. Despite the low performance of Ether ETFs, Ether remains the largest altcoin for crypto ETFs in terms of assets under management (AUM), surpassing others like Solana (SOL) and XRP (XRP).

Following approval from the US SEC in May 2024, spot Ether ETFs had a slow start in 2024, with performance lagging behind the massive spot Bitcoin ETF debut. Low investor demand led some issuers like VanEck to cease trading futures Ether ETFs, while WisdomTree withdrew its Ethereum Trust ETF proposal in September 2024. In March 2025, ARK liquidated its futures ETFs for both Ether and Bitcoin. The community's reactions to Two Prime's shift and the overall performance of Ether ETFs reflect the ongoing debate and uncertainty surrounding the future of Ether in the cryptocurrency market.