Asia Morning Briefing: ETH Bulls Target $5K as Inflows Surge

Ethereum bulls charge toward $5,000 as institutional flows hit unprecedented levels—igniting the strongest rally since the last cycle peak.

Market Momentum Builds

Massive capital inflows flood ETH markets, pushing prices toward psychological resistance levels not seen since the 2021 mania. Trading volumes explode across Asian exchanges as institutional players position for what could become the next major leg up.

Technical Breakout Underway

ETH smashes through multiple resistance zones with conviction, leaving short sellers scrambling. The $5,000 target now appears within reach as momentum indicators flash bullish signals across all timeframes.

Institutional Adoption Accelerates

Wall Street firms—late as always—finally wake up to Ethereum's potential, pouring billions into spot and derivative products. Traditional finance's embrace validates what crypto natives knew years ago, yet somehow they'll still take credit for 'discovering' the trend.

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ETH's chances of hitting $5,000 this month climbed to 26% on Polymarket, up from 16% just a few days ago, as traders priced in momentum from institutional accumulation and shifting BTC-ETH flows.

“Ethereum’s recent strength is mainly showcased by the level of flows into it, where a major liquidity floor has been built by institutions,” said March Zheng, General Partner at Bizantine Capital in a note to CoinDesk.

He added that the ETH/BTC ratio had been sitting at a localized low, making a rebound overdue, and that this cycle is supported by stronger fundamentals such as global stablecoin adoption and clearer regulation.

Market rotation added further color to the rally, Enflux, a market maker, wrote to CoinDesk in a note. XRP joined ETH in leading the majors, while capital chased new narratives, such as CRO, following TRUMP Media’s “Cronos Treasury” initiative.

Hyperliquid’s surge in trading volume, surpassing Robinhood in July, highlighted how retail speculation is tilting toward native infrastructure, with its $HYPE token gaining double digits. These undercurrents suggest that what matters most is not the day’s closing print but the structural reallocation of liquidity across the crypto landscape, Enflux noted.

Liquidity is being redistributed across the crypto landscape, market observers say, but ETH’s role at the center is reinforced by institutional conviction.

“Markets react to headlines, but longer-term value is driven by fundamentals," Gracie Lin, CEO of OKX Singapore, told CoinDesk in a note.

"This is why ethereum continues to show strength through real utility — even as prices pull back, big institutional moves like BitMine’s ETH accumulation prove there’s deep conviction in its role at the core of crypto," Lin continued. "With new macro data like the US PCE coming in later this week, we’re about to see how that conviction holds up amidst volatility.”

ETH has outpaced BTC by a wide margin, gaining 20% over the past 30 days compared to bitcoin’s 6% decline, market data shows, and trading volumes show ETH commanding more liquidity than BTC despite its smaller market cap.

Market Movements

Bitcoin is trading at $111,733.63, but weak on-chain activity and $940M in liquidations signal fading momentum.

Ether is trading at $4,598.67, below its recent all-time high of $4,946, as institutional inflows power the rally while DeFi activity and TVL remain weaker than in past cycles.

Gold is trading at $3,410.80, holding above $3,400 as Powell’s rate-cut hints, Trump’s Fed shake-up, and record central bank buying fuel safe-haven demand with traders eyeing a run toward $3,500.

Asia-Pacific markets mostly fell Wednesday despite Wall Street’s overnight gains, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 down 0.17%.

The S&P 500 ROSE 0.41% to 6,465.94 on Tuesday as investors looked past Trump’s removal of Fed Governor Lisa Cook and awaited Nvidia’s earnings.

Elsewhere in Crypto:

• Trump-backed World Liberty Token Could Decimate Retail Investors, Compass Point Warns (Decrypt)
• U.S. CFTC, a Top Crypto Watchdog, Is About to Shrink Commission to Only One Member (CoinDesk)
• Bitcoin Miner Hut 8 Surges 10% on 1.5GW Expansion Plans (CoinDesk)