$ETH
Ethereum (ETH) is the foundational platform for decentralized applications, currently maintaining a strong position in the 2026 crypto landscape. It is trading around $3,296, with a massive staked market cap exceeding $118 billion as nearly 30% of the total supply is now locked in proof-of-stake.
The network's value is bolstered by its deflationary burning mechanism and growing institutional adoption via Ethereum ETFs, which recently ended a streak of outflows with fresh net inflows. Investors are focused on the 2026 "Glamsterdam" and "Hegota" upgrades, which aim to introduce parallel transaction processing and increase the gas limit to 200 million units, potentially scaling the network to 10,000 TPS. Despite being roughly 33% below its August 2025 all-time high of $4,953, its role as the center of the DeFi ecosystem and upcoming technical breakthroughs suggest significant long-term growth potential.