ETH Eyes $2,000 on Withdrawal Profile and Jump in Staking Inflows

Key Insights:

• ETH tracked the broader market into negative territory on Friday, falling 3.34% to end the day at $1,939.
• Further market reaction to the SEC v Ripple Court ruling and uncertainty over an SEC appeal weighed on investor sentiment.
• However, the technical indicators remained bullish, signaling a return to $2,000.

Ethereum (ETH) fell by 3.34% on Friday. Partially reversing a 7.16% rally from Thursday, ETH ended the day at $1,939. Despite the bearish session, ETH tested resistance at $2,030 for the first time since May 6 before sliding into the red.

Ethereum Price Action

This morning, ETH was down 0.31% to $1,933. A bearish start to the day saw ETH fall from an opening price of $1,939 to a low of $1,928.

Daily Chart

The Daily Chart showed ETH/USD sitting below the $2,075 – $2,105 resistance band.

However, ETH/USD remained above the 50-day ($1,866) and 200-day ($1,766) EMAs, signaling bullish momentum over the near and long term.

Notably, the 50-day EMA widened further from the 200-day EMA and reflected bullish momentum.

Looking at the 14-Daily RSI, the 55.69 reading signaled a bullish outlook, aligned with the 50-day and 200-day EMAs. Significantly, the RSI supports a run at the $2,075 – $2,105 resistance band.

4-Hourly Chart

Looking at the 4-Hourly Chart, the ETH/USD faces strong resistance at the $1,950 psychological level. ETH/USD sits below the $2,075 – $2,105 resistance band. However, ETH remains above the 50-day ($1,911) and 200-day ($1,874) EMAs, sending bullish near and longer-term signals.

Significantly, the 50-day EMA pulled away from the 200-day EMA, signaling a return to $2,000 to target the $2,075 – $2,105 resistance band.

However, a fall through the 50-day EMA ($1,911) would bring the $1,895 – $1,865 support band and the 200-day EMA ($1,874) into view.

The 14-4H RSI reading of 51.85 sends bullish ETH price signals, with buying pressure outweighing selling pressure. Significantly, the bullish RSI aligns with the 50-day EMA and supports a return to $2,000.

Staking Statistics Turned Bullish

According to CryptoQuant, staking inflows fell from 125,860 ETH on Thursday to 96,736 on Friday. Significantly, staking inflows remained above Friday trends, a bullish price signal.

The overnight withdrawal profile was relatively bearish, with principal withdrawals rising to above-normal levels. However, withdrawal projections for the morning session are bullish. Projections show ETH withdrawal levels will sit at normal withdrawal levels for the morning session.

On Friday, the net ETH staking balance stood at a 117,930 ETH surplus ($225.53 million), up 514% over 24 hours. Deposits totaled 130,360 ETH versus withdrawals of 12,430.

According to TokenUnlocks, total pending withdrawals stood at 25,460 ETH, equivalent to approximately $49.16 million. Notably, the staking APR stood at 5.55%, unchanged over 24 hours. While the downward trend in the staking APR is ETH price negative, the spike in the net staking balance is positive.

ETH Sees Red Despite Spike an Upward Trend in Staking Inflows

Investors continued to react to the SEC v Ripple Court ruling classifying XRP as a security in Programmatic Sales on exchanges.

The SEC loss supported a shift in sentiment toward the SEC regulation by enforcement mantra. Notably, the SEC has continued to target staking products, impacting platforms including Kraken. However, the latest staking statistics suggest an expectation that the SEC will have to step back from targeting staking services after the Court ruling.

While the upward trend in staking inflows is positive, uncertainty over an SEC appeal weighed on investor sentiment.

The SEC was not forthcoming on whether it would appeal the Court ruling, with the SEC and Ripple going to trial over XRP sales to institutional clients.

An SEC appeal would create more regulatory uncertainty that has plagued the US digital asset space since December 2020.

The Day Ahead

Investors should continue to monitor the crypto news wires for SEC v Ripple case-related chatter.

However, beyond the SEC v Ripple case and the staking statistics, investors should track ETF chatter, with Binance and US lawmaker crypto chatter also focal points.