Ethereum’s long-term structure is drawing renewed attention as price action lines up with a broader shift in market behavior. According to market watcher CyrilXBT, ETH is no longer trading in a fragile recovery zone.

Instead, it has reclaimed a major historical range and is now sitting just below its previous cycle highs. This position alone carries weight, especially after nearly three years of base building following the 2022 downturn.

Also Read: Ethereum Lags Behind Bitcoin as Past Cycle Pattern Repeats in 2025

Ethereum Near Historic Resistance After Long Accumulation

On higher charts, however, Ethereum’s price pattern offers a very simple reading. Ethereum displayed very good growth from 2020 into 2021, but then embarked on an extended period of topping action. The next stage took it into an extended period of correction through 2022 and into 2023.

Rather than weakening and hitting new lows through its cycle, Ethereum held firm and established a base. Such formations normally indicate that there’s been continuous accumulation rather than selling.

Source: X

Also, volume patterns appear to support this hypothesis. Activity is not as low as it seemed around the 2022 lows, but it is also not indicative of extreme levels. A healthy level seems to be emerging.

For ETH to realistically project into the $8,000 to $10,000 level based on historical patterns after an extension, the level needs to be broken, and support needs to be maintained above the former all-time high. Anything less will simply see further sideways action.

Institutional ETH Holdings Signal Quiet Confidence

Price structure, of course, is only one aspect of what happens on the chain, and fund data provides another level of perspective here. CyrilXBT noted that strategic reserves and ETF funds currently hold between 6 and 6.8 million ETH.

This amounts to a considerable portion of supply in terms of what’s held by non-trader entities. What’s notable is the nature of this demand. 

Source: X

Even as the mechanics for issuing and burning are more or less balanced, the ratio of purchases to issues is still more than 1. What this means is that demand still absorbs the new supply in the sideways market phase.

Also Read: Solana and Ethereum Poised to Explode as Tokenization Accelerates

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Filed under: Bitcoin - @ January 5, 2026 8:00 am