Key Takeaways
- Bitwise projects institutions and treasury firms will buy more ETH than will be issued, a dynamic Hougan says will push prices higher.
- Ethereum currently outpaces Bitcoin as ETH/BTC climbs from 0.018 to 0.031 and BTC dominance slips from 66% to 61%.
Ethereum is poised for further gains amid surging institutional demand and corporate buying that far outpaces new supply, Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan wrote in a note to clients Tuesday afternoon.
More than $10 billion in ETH has been purchased by ETPs and corporations since mid-May, representing 32 times the amount of new ETH issued during that period.
The second-largest crypto asset has significantly outperformed Bitcoin over the past three months, gaining more than 105% since mid-May, while Bitcoin has risen just 23%. That stretch marked the bottom of the ETH/BTC ratio at 0.018, which has since climbed to 0.031.
The shift also pushed Bitcoin’s dominance down from 66% to 61%, reflecting growing momentum behind Ethereum. Over the past seven days, Bitcoin has gained just 2% to trade near $120K, while Ethereum has surged 24% to $3,700, further highlighting ETH’s continued outperformance.
That momentum is being fueled in large part by institutional inflows: corporate buyers including Bitmine Immersion Technologies, SharpLink Gaming, Bit Digital, and Ether Machine have collectively acquired more than 2.8 million ETH, while Ethereum ETPs have attracted over $5 billion in new flows since May.
“Sometimes, it really is that simple,” Hougan said, referring to the widening demand-supply gap driving Ethereum’s price appreciation.
Bitwise projects ETPs and public companies could purchase up to 5.3 million ETH over the next year, compared to expected issuance of just 0.8 million ETH.
The firm noted that ETH treasury companies are trading at premiums to their holdings while Ethereum ETPs still lag behind Bitcoin ETPs in total assets.
