On Thursday, Ethereum’s price briefly fell below $2,000 for the first time since late March. In doing so, King Altcoin effectively wiped out all of its second quarter profits. As of this writing, it is down 19% from April’s peak of nearly $2.5 million.
This week alone, the value of altcoins has fallen by 6%.
If the stock loses its second-quarter support zone at $2,000, short sellers could push it down to the lower bound of the 2026 sideways structure at $1.8,000.
This decline reflected a broader macro-driven correction that also pushed Bitcoin lower. However, according to Nansen, $ETHweakness indicated a “more serious problem”.
negative $ETH Factors: ETF outflows, reduced network activity
Nansen Research analyst Nicolai Sondergaard told AMBCrypto in an email statement:
Gas prices are below 2 Gwei near cycle lows, indicating weak network demand. There are fewer people transacting, fewer contracts are being invoked, and the writing mechanisms that used to exist are obsolete. $ETH Structural deflation has slowed significantly.
The proposition of “store value” does not currently apply to altcoins. Actually grayscale proposed upper limit Stake your rewards to curb the resulting dilution of inflation. $ETHvalue.
However, part of the problem is structural. Currently, Layer 2 (L2) processes most of the transactions and captures revenue from mainnet, Sondergaard added.
For analysts, the low combustion mechanism has changed $ETH It “removes one of the key narratives that provided conviction in previous cycles.”
In terms of institutional demand, $ETH falling behind $BTC 2026. especially, $ETH/$BTC The ratio has fallen to its lowest level in a year. Analysts emphasized:
of $ETH/$BTC The ratio is compressed to 0.027, which is the more obvious number. This reflects robust cyclical dynamics throughout 2026. Bitcoin continues to attract institutional attention; $ETH You haven’t pulled the same weight yet.
US spot after May 11th $ETH ETFs are experiencing continuous outflows every day. Monthly outflows also reached $522 million, the highest level since December of last year.
What triggers it? $ETHRebound?
for $ETH Spot renewal is necessary for a strong recovery $ETH ETF inflows and network demand. Nansen’s Sondergaard concluded:
The macro environment also needs to stop undermining risk appetite. $ETH You don’t need all of these at once, but you need at least two. At the moment, there are none of them.
nevertheless, whales piled up above Bid on recent declines. In fact, over 100,000 wallets $ETH Currently managing 22% of supply, or 17.4 million pieces $ETHIt hit a 10-week high.
But whale demand, likely driven by big players like Bitmine, hasn’t been enough to taper off on-chain capital outflows. especially, $ETHCapital outflows, as tracked by realization caps, have worsened since October last year.
In fact, in 2026, altcoins experienced a capital outflow of $15 billion as the realization ceiling dropped from $310 billion to $295 billion.
In other words, the total demand is $ETH It was still negative. This further strengthened Nansen’s prospects for Sondergaard.
teeth $ETH Price retest $1.8K?
If the slump in demand and outflow continues, $ETHThe price could drop to $1.8,000. Interestingly, the MVRV price range also hinted at such a prediction.
Realized price in early 2026 (1.0 RP, green) After price rejection at $2.3,000; $ETH We will likely retest the next support band at $1.8,000 (blue). In fact, in the virtual currency winter of 2022, $ETH A true bottom was marked only after a decisive break above the lower band of the indicator.
Overall, $ETH If weak institutional demand and subdued network activity continue into June, the price could fall to $1.8,000 in the medium term.
Final summary
- According to Nansen, $ETH Currently, there is “no” catalyst that fueled the past rally.
- +100K whale $ETH It has been actively buying the decline in Q2, increasing its total coin holdings to 17.4 million coins.
