ETH Steps Back Into Spotlight

GM Anon!

ETH is moving, the market’s paying attention, and suddenly things don’t feel so stuck anymore. BlackRock wants staking, the GENIUS Act is through, and whales are stacking like it’s 2021. DeFi’s waking up, volumes are ticking higher, and even classic memes are starting to stir again. Feels like the market’s looking to ETH to set the tone — and right now, it’s doing exactly that. Let’s break it down!

TLDR

• ETH leads crypto flows with $727M in net inflows this week.

• BlackRock adds staking to its ETH ETF filing.

• GENIUS Act passes Senate, boosting U.S. crypto positioning.

• ETH reclaims $3,500 and leads market momentum.

• Institutions accumulate BTC with over $1B in new buys.

• DeFi volumes climb, ETH regains ground on DEX trading.

• Stablecoins expand with Visa, JPMorgan, and Revolut developments.

• Speculative capital rotates into alt L1s, memes, and DeSci.

• Solana narratives tighten as ETH regains leadership.

• Smart money stacks ETH, PUMP, rotates out of older trades.

Market Update

Macro markets remain bullish with equities pushing into fresh highs. The S&P 500 futures set new all-time highs this week, while Nvidia hit yet another all-time high, continuing its dominance as AI remains the driving force for tech stocks. In crypto-adjacent equities, Coinbase stock broke through to new all-time highs, surpassing a $100 billion market cap and rising 60% month-over-month. Elsewhere, Sharplink stock surged to $35 after completing its ATM program, supported by growing ETH exposure and plans to raise $6 billion for further accumulation.

Crypto is firmly on the political agenda in the U.S. President Trump signed the landmark GENIUS Act, celebrating it as an "exciting new frontier" for crypto innovation. His administration also advanced proposals to allow crypto to be used as collateral for mortgages, and is preparing an executive order to permit crypto within 401(k) retirement plans. Trump is also backing crypto tax exemptions, according to White House communications. Though the administration denied reports, rumors persisted that Trump drafted a letter to fire Powell. Trump continues to push publicly for a 300bps rate cut and is said to be considering replacing Powell with Bessent. Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve clarified that banks can hold crypto under strict regulatory oversight.

Institutional flows into crypto continue at an aggressive pace. The crypto market cap surpassed $4 trillion for the first time this week, driven by deep-pocketed accumulation. MicroStrategy purchased $475 million worth of BTC, DDC Enterprise acquired $100 million BTC from Animoca, Metaplanet bought another $95 million BTC, Sequans added $79 million BTC, and Smarter Web accumulated 325 more BTC. Separately, BTC-backed loans on Coinbase have now surpassed $1 billion in collateral. Meanwhile, a whale moved $2 billion in BTC to Galaxy Digital for sale, highlighting continued OTC activity.

Ethereum remains firmly in the spotlight. BlackRock filed to add staking to its ETH ETF, and Peter Thiel took a 9% stake in Ethereum treasury management firm BMNR. Stablecoin markets continue to expand, with Tether minting $3 billion USDT within a single day, pushing total stablecoin market cap to $260 billion. Meanwhile, France is exploring a 5-year BTC mining pilot, and Russia’s Sberbank is preparing crypto custody services to meet growing demand.

Sector flows show increased speculative appetite. HYPE recently reached all-time highs with $10.6 billion in open interest. Meme-fueled projects saw rotation as PUMP fell back to a $4.5 billion FDV. Other accumulation narratives remain hot: Bit Origin plans to raise $500 million to buy DOGE, Upexi raised $200 million to buy SOL, Thumzup Media is preparing a $250 million crypto purchase, and GameSquare plans to acquire $70 million in ETH.

On-chain and DeFi revenue trends continue to evolve alongside user behavior. Phantom has now overtaken Pumpfun in 24-hour revenue, reflecting shifting user flows across speculative platforms. Backpack launched a dedicated FTX claims sales channel this week, offering new avenues for distressed asset recovery. Meanwhile, Plasma is kicking off its XPL sale today, and Kaito announced an ICO-style launchpad in partnership with Cookie and Legion, signaling renewed interest in early-stage token platforms.

Narrative momentum remains fully intact: institutional adoption is accelerating, political support for crypto is more explicit than ever, and speculative capital continues rotating across majors, infrastructure plays, and meme sectors. As Bo Hines noted — a huge week lies ahead for crypto.

Market Data Points

Ethereum is steadily regaining ground in DEX bot trading volume dominance, with its recent uptrend aligning with growing strength in ETH price and momentum. After months of Solana holding the lion’s share, Ethereum’s share has been climbing consistently since late June, marking a clear shift in trader behavior.

Solana remains the leader, but the gap is narrowing. If Ethereum’s price action continues to firm up, this volume trend may accelerate further in its favor.

Stablecoin issuers continue to dominate crypto revenue flows over the past week, with Tether pulling in a staggering $142.7 million and Circle following with $46 million. 

Elsewhere, PancakeSwap and Hyperliquid remain the standout DEX revenue drivers, bringing in $27.5 million and $21.3 million respectively over seven days, both well ahead of most chains and apps. Axiom also held firm with over $10 million in revenue, reflecting continued engagement on its platform.

Further down the list but still inside the top 10, letsBONK.fun captured $8 million in revenue, reflecting sustained retail appetite for meme coin launches. Pump also maintained momentum with $4.8 million in revenue. Meanwhile, Phantom secured $4.88 million, highlighting how wallet infrastructure and integrations — particularly with Hyperliquid perps — remain a steady contributor to protocol revenues.

Alt season hasn’t properly kicked off yet, but there are clear signs of capital starting to rotate into areas that typically lead the way when it does. DeSci, NFTs, Launchpads, and DEXs have been the biggest movers over the past week, with DeSci standing out with nearly 40% gains. It’s not broad-based yet, but some capital is positioning early, hunting momentum in higher beta narratives while the rest of the market waits.

All eyes remain on Ethereum as it continues to lead the market in both flows and price action. Inflows have been consistently strong for weeks, with another $727M in net positive flows over the past 7 days alone. Capital is clearly positioning around ETH as the benchmark for strength right now, and price performance is starting to reflect that conviction. For now, Ethereum is setting the tone.

Majors & Memes

Over the past week, ETH finally stepped back into the spotlight, rallying 20% and reclaiming the $3,500 level. The move has pulled attention back to Ethereum as the key signal for broader risk appetite and potential altseason rotation. 

With ETH showing serious strength after months of stagnation, flows have started rotating back into higher-beta names tied to L1s, DeFi, and memes. Whether this is the start of something more sustained or just another squeeze remains to be seen, but ETH’s reclaim of key levels is what the market needed to see for altcoins to catch any serious momentum.

BTC remained subdued, finishing the week up just 0.3%, still hovering above $117K without breaking higher or rolling over—a minor reprieve after its run to all-time highs. XRP pushed higher by 26.6% as fundamentals and narrative attention continue to build, setting the stage for a serious run as the next leg of the bull market unfolds. BNB was steady as usual, gaining 6.1% as Binance ecosystem flows remain stable and consistent.

SOL managed a 9.7% gain, and It’s likely SOL will have its turn once market focus inevitably shifts away from ETH again. DOGE bounced 17.6%, a typical move during a week of improved risk appetite, while ADA climbed 15.4%, though it remains structurally weaker than leaders like ETH and SOL. 

TRX posted an 8.2% gain, consistent with its usual stablecoin-driven demand. HYPE fell 3%, a reminder that not every newer name is catching this latest rotation yet—but given its performance this cycle, more action seems inevitable. HYPE has already proven itself as one of this cycle’s biggest runners and remains on radar for another major leg up.

Outside the majors, speculative capital rotated hard into beta plays. CRV stood out, rallying 56.9% after months of heavy drawdowns, finally finding relief as sentiment flipped. BONK surged 45.5%, with FLOKI up 40%, confirming that meme flows remain firmly alive. PENGU followed with 39.8%, benefitting from broader NFT and meme speculation. ALGO and HBAR both posted strong weeks, each up around 35%, typical laggard L1s catching sympathy flows as ETH reclaims strength. Elsewhere, XLM gained 30%, and MNT added 29.5%, both benefitting from renewed interest in L2 narratives tied back to Ethereum’s performance.

Among the week’s losers, WBT dropped 5.8%, PI fell 4.8%, and HYPE slipped 3%. BCH gave back 3%, unable to keep up with the broader market bounce. XMR dropped 2.1% as privacy narratives remain sidelined. 

With ETH reclaiming leadership, the door is open for broader rotation, but the market remains sensitive to whether this move can sustain. If ETH holds or pushes higher, expect further rotation into alt L1s, DeFi, and meme plays. If it stalls, this past week’s gains could unwind just as quickly. 

Mindshare

Over the past seven days, Ani has been the clear leader in capturing attention, emerging as the dominant focus for capital and narrative. Its sustained lead wasn’t by chance — flows were deliberate, and Ani’s position has only been reinforced as the days progressed.

Attempts from GP, LABUBU, and TRENCHER to gain traction through the middle of the week showed flashes of rotation, but none managed to establish lasting dominance. The flows here were more opportunistic than structural, reflecting a cautious market not yet ready to commit to new leadership beyond the frontrunners.

Valentine surged late in the period, briefly commanding significant attention, but this proved short-lived. The fade in momentum there highlights a broader truth in the current environment: capital is rotating, but without conviction. These rotations are reactive, driven more by short-term setups than genuine belief in trend continuity.

Overall, the narrative remains fluid, with participants visibly waiting for confirmation from majors like Ethereum to signal a true risk-on environment. Until that catalyst arrives, attention will likely continue to churn at the edges without firmly establishing any new leaders beyond what we've already seen.

Smart Money Accumulation

Over the past 7 days, smart money flows have concentrated heavily on Pump.fun’s official platform token, $PUMP, with over $8 million now held across key wallets. Despite fresh competition from platforms like letsBONK.fun, $PUMP remains the dominant meme launch platform attracting meaningful capital. The accumulation is deliberate, tied to Pump.fun’s treasury-backed buybacks and its positioning at the center of meme liquidity flows.

Outside of $PUMP, accumulation trends show clear rotation into Tokabu, Uranus, and BlueChip. Tokabu saw a +30.7% increase in smart money holdings, reflecting fresh wallet accumulation over the week. Uranus posted a substantial +95.95% growth in holdings, and BlueChip increased +47.08% — all signs that larger wallets are quietly positioning ahead of potential narrative continuation.

Conversely, Launchcoin saw a -10.91% reduction in holdings, with sharper decreases in GOR (-35.95%) and Fartcoin (-29.95%). These reductions signal clear rotation out of older trades and into newer, higher-conviction narratives.

The bigger picture: smart money is consolidating into tokens where liquidity, infrastructure, and momentum are strongest — with $PUMP holding the lead, even as platforms like letsBONK.fun attempt to capture attention.

Smart money accumulation over the past 7 days within the EVM ecosystem has been measured, with selective increases but lacking the kind of aggressive rotation one might have expected given Ethereum’s latest strength. Typically, as ETH rallies, flows into EVM tokens tend to lead — yet this time, caution remains the prevailing tone, with Solana seeing comparable or even more spirited positioning in places.

SBET leads the accumulation on the EVM side with a +5.83% increase in holdings, followed by JOE with a notable +32.36% rise, suggesting traders are positioning ahead of potential volatility in lighter cap EVM names. MOODENG also posted a +13.43% increase, adding to signs of selective engagement.

The rest of the inflows were more muted. PEPE saw just +0.2%, while Mog added +2.96% — incremental but far from conviction buying. BOOE rose +9.43%, rounding out the more active names.

On the outflows, SHRUB saw the most meaningful reduction with -15.96%, alongside COCORO (-9.98%) and NKP (-5.01%), suggesting rotations are happening on a name-by-name basis rather than reflecting broader confidence in the sector. CULT also saw light trimming at -1.76%.

Overall, despite Ethereum’s breakout strength, smart money remains cautious, with flows still subdued and tactical rather than aggressive.

That wraps up this post—we hope you found the insights valuable. See you next week, anon! 🚀