Whales Dump ETH—Price Tanks, But Traders Double Down on New ATH Bets
Ethereum's price just got mauled by whale-sized sell orders—but the crowd's still screaming 'buy the dip.' Here's why traders are ignoring the blood in the water.
Whale Watch Turns Feeding Frenzy
Big players cashed out hard, sending ETH into a nosedive. Classic crypto volatility—or the smart money knows something we don't? Either way, retail's still piling in like this is a Black Friday sale.
Contrarian Traders See ATH Blueprints
While weak hands panic, OI in ETH derivatives just hit record highs. Seems everyone's playing the 'whales vs. degens' narrative—with leverage, naturally. Because nothing says 'sound investment strategy' like 50x longing a volatile asset.
The closer: Watch those funding rates. When perpetual swaps pay you to go long, maybe ask why the whales aren't biting. (Spoiler: they'll buy back cheaper after you've been liquidated.)
Everyone’s dumping ETH
In an August 6 analysis, CryptoQuant researcher Maartum highlighted that sellers are offloading way more ETH than buyers are willing to absorb, inflicting bearish momentum. The sharp spike in sell pressure saw Net Taker Volume for ETH, the indicator that measures the difference between market buy orders and market sell orders, drop to -$418.8 million in a single day.
This means sellers unloaded 115,400 more ETH than buyers took in at market price, the second-largest daily sell imbalance on record. It is a sign that short-term sentiment has flipped bearish, with traders rushing to exit positions faster than demand can keep up.
🚨 ETH Dump Alert: -$418.8M Net Taker Volume (daily)
Taker sellers offloaded 115.4K more $ETH than buyers were willing to absorb.
This is the 2nd largest daily sell-side imbalance ever. pic.twitter.com/XDw9cmDbKS
But it is not just traders. Ether ETF issuers like BlackRock and Fidelity have also been selling in size, especially as the funds’ outflows continue to pile up. crypto.news reported earlier that BlackRock deposited $372 million worth of ETH into Coinbase Prime, a step often linked to liquidation.
Fidelity made a similar move, selling 14,978 ETH, worth $53.6 million, and adding to the pressure. Blockchain tracker Lookonchain also recently flagged several large whale dumps, with nearly $70 million sold in the past 24 hours alone.
Despite the selling, market Optimism hasn’t completely collapsed.
Market still betting on ETH ATH
On Polymarket, traders are still waging a 54% chance that Ethereum will set a new all-time high before the end of the year. The odds are up 12% in the last 24 hours, suggesting that even the recent wave of selling has not deterred investor confidence.
Fueling the optimism is growing institutional interest in ETH. Nearly 17 public companies now hold Ethereum on their balance sheets, with combined holdings worth around $6 billion. Most of these firms have signaled long-term conviction, adding weight to the view that the trend could extend and support price upside.
On the technical side, ETH is holding above $3,600 and still trading above key moving averages. The 20-day EMA at $3,546 is acting as immediate support, but momentum is clearly cooling. The RSI has pulled back from overbought levels and is now drifting below 60, showing that bullish pressure is easing.
If ETH loses the 20-day, the next support zone sits around the 50-day EMA at $3,210, which previously acted as a consolidation zone in July. A bounce from here could reignite bullish momentum, but if selling continues, the asset’s price may slide further.
