Bitcoin, Ethereum, Crypto News and Price Indices

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Ethereum dominates the overall value-locked metric, but faces scrutiny on the Layer-2 metric.

ETH inflation rose to 0.8% following a slowdown in Onchain activity, while US macroeconomic fears kept the commodity markets in bearish territory.

Ether (ETH) price has regained the $2,100 level after a 43% crash in 9 days, which the altcoin finished with a low of $1,750 on Friday. Despite a 22% relief rally after hitting the lowest price since April 2025, ETH derivatives markets continue to reflect investors' fears of further declines. Regardless of whether the macroeconomic environment is driving investor concerns, the prospects for a sustained bullish momentum for ETH in the short term are dim.

ETH monthly futures were trading at a 3% premium to regular spot markets on Monday, below the 5% neutral threshold. This lack of optimism among ether traders has been constant in the last month, although the price has dropped to 1,800 dollars, but it has not shown any improvement. At these levels, unless the bulls show strong risk appetite, the bears can remain in control.

ETH in 2010 He predicted a 9 percent decline in the broader cryptocurrency market capitalization by 2026, prompting investors to question what is driving capital. From a broader perspective, the declining demand for decentralized applications (DApps) is not limited to Ethereum. It remains a leader in total value locked (TVL) and payment generation while the network includes layer-2 solutions.

Deposits on the Ethereum base layer account for 58% of the entire blockchain industry. When including base, arbitrage and optimism, that figure exceeds 65%. For example, the largest application deposit on Solana is no more than $2 billion. In comparison, the largest DApp on the Ethereum base layer holds more than $23 billion in TVL. Solana Jupiter doesn't even crack 14 on Ethereum.

ETH supply growth and layer-2 subsidies are problematic

The Ethereum base layer ranked third in network payments, generating $19 million in 30 days, while the layer-2 ecosystem contributed another $14.6 million. Ethereum has faced criticism for being heavily subsidized by bullish valuations – a strategy Vitalik Buterin himself admits needs adjustment. Ethereum's founder argued on Tuesday that the network should prioritize expansion of the base layer.

According to Buterin, the path to layer-2 decentralization turned out to be more difficult than expected. Current solutions are said to be based on many sig controlled bridges that do not meet the security requirements required by Ethereum's original vision. Buterin recognizes that this is not the endgame for Layer 2, as there will continue to be demand for networks that offer privacy features and application-oriented design, especially for non-financial applications.

Related: Vitalik draws the line between ‘real DeFi' and a centralized cropper coin

Investor frustration can be partly explained by the rejection of the Ether strategy, which is a secondary effect of reduced Ethereum network activity. The built-in burn-in method is based on the data processing needs of the base layer; Without it, there is a net increase in the supply of ETH. Annual growth of total ETH has reached 0.8% over the past 30 days, a significant jump from a year ago when the same rate of inflation was close to 0%.

Ether traders are skeptical that a sustained rally in the near term is likely due to uncertainty in the US job market and the long-term sustainability of the artificial intelligence infrastructure. Therefore, the weak ETH derivatives markets are a reflection of general risk aversion and a slowdown in onchain activity, factors that will take a long time to stabilize.