Ethereum’s price has once again moved back toward the $3,300 range, a level it has struggled to maintain for the past two months. Each attempt to break higher has been met with resistance, leaving traders wondering whether the market can finally flip this area into meaningful support as 2026 approaches.
Even with ongoing upgrades and its strong lead in total value locked, overall sentiment around Ethereum remains cautious. Many market watchers are unsure whether ETH has enough strength to make a push toward $4,000 anytime soon, especially while conditions across the broader crypto market stay somewhat unstable.
Since November, Ethereum has largely been moving in step with the rest of the market. Its limited momentum seems to be influenced less by internal issues and more by slowing usage across decentralized applications. Whether this comes from economic uncertainty or a shift in risk appetite, Ethereum’s near-term upside continues to face challenges.
A look at on-chain activity shows that user engagement has cooled. Trading volumes on decentralized exchanges have dropped noticeably. Data from DefiLlama shows total DEX volume over the past two weeks at around $150.4 billion, a sharp drop from the record $340 billion hit in January 2025. On Ethereum itself, weekly DEX volume has fallen to roughly $9 billion, far below the $27.8 billion peak seen in October 2025.
This steep pullback—around a 65 percent decline—has helped push Ethereum’s network fees down to about $2.6 million, an 87 percent decrease from just three months ago. Still, Ethereum remains the market leader, accounting for about half of all DEX activity when its major layer-2 networks such as Base, Arbitrum, and Polygon are included.
Despite the cooldown in usage, institutional confidence in Ethereum has remained relatively steady. The network continues to dominate in total value locked, signaling that large players still prefer Ethereum’s ecosystem even as other chains like Tron, Solana, and BNB Chain generate higher base-layer fees. Some critics argue that Ethereum has not fully taken advantage of its smart contract deposits, though this appears intentional given its long-term emphasis on rollup-driven scaling.
Solana, meanwhile, processes more transactions than the next ten largest networks combined. Over the past month, Ethereum handled roughly 54.4 million transactions, while the Base layer-2 alone processed more than 600 million. These differences reflect distinct design choices: Solana focuses on high-throughput execution at the base layer, while Ethereum leans on a modular approach with significant activity pushed to rollups.
The prolonged period with ETH trading below $3,200 has also created pressure for businesses that hold large ETH reserves or raised capital based on expectations of stronger performance. Bitmine Immersion, for instance, reportedly holds around $13.2 billion in Ethereum, yet its stock currently trades at a 9 percent discount to its net asset value.
For now, it’s uncertain what might trigger a strong upward move for Ethereum. Competing networks continue to attract users with lower costs and faster speeds, and the broader market still appears cautious. A return to $4,000 or higher will likely require renewed interest in blockchain applications and a stronger appetite for risk among investors, especially as questions around the US economic outlook continue to influence market behavior.
This piece is intended for informational purposes only and reflects personal market observations. It should not be taken as investment advice. Always conduct your own research before making financial decisions.
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