ETH is trading below its realized price against Bitcoin, and that alone is a signal worth watching. On-chain data from CryptoQuant shows selling pressure easing and demand slowly recovering, yet analysts are careful not to call a definitive bottom just yet.
What the numbers actually say
Trading below realized price means the average holder is sitting on a loss, a condition that has historically preceded market bottoms but does not guarantee one. CryptoQuant's indicators suggest the worst of the selling may be behind Ether, with on-chain activity pointing to reduced distribution and some demand returning at current levels. Still, the key confirmation signals that analysts typically want to see before declaring a cycle low remain absent.
The ETH/BTC pair has been under sustained pressure for months, with Bitcoin consistently outperforming Ether across most timeframes. That dynamic has pushed some capital toward Bitcoin-native products: US Bitcoin ETFs posted seven consecutive days of inflows even as BTC pulled back from $66K, underscoring where institutional appetite has been sitting lately.
How the market is reading this
Traders watching the ETH/BTC chart are split. The cautious camp points out that "easing selling pressure" and an actual reversal are two very different things, and entering early has burned people before in this pair. The more optimistic read is that accumulation at realized price or below tends to compress further downside, making the risk/reward skew more favorable even without a confirmed bottom signal.
There is also a broader crypto sentiment factor at play. Crypto's political momentum heading into 2025 has mostly benefited Bitcoin's narrative directly, which keeps Ether fighting for relative attention in a market that is still sorting out regulatory clarity for non-BTC assets. Until that picture sharpens, the ETH/BTC bottom call is likely to stay contested.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice or an investment recommendation.
