The share of the second-largest cryptocurrency on exchanges has been declining for six consecutive months, according to specialists at Santiment.
🤑 Ethereum's number of non-empty wallets on the network has now surged to over 175.5 million, a record among all cryptocurrencies. As staking continues to attract strong interest, especially while markets remain stagnant, exchange supply will keep shrinking as well. pic.twitter.com/sbDzmoRRS5
— Santiment (@santimentfeed) January 27, 2026
In July 2024, Ethereum exchange balances peaked at 12.31 million coins. By January 2026, this figure had dropped to 8.15 million ETH.
Experts anticipate a continued outflow of assets from exchanges due to Ethereum's weak price dynamics. For the past month, the asset has been trading within a narrow range of $2900 to $3300.
As of this writing, the leading altcoin is priced at approximately $2940.
Hourly chart of ETH/USDT on Binance. Source: TradingView.
The primary driver behind the decline in liquidity is the high interest in staking, analysts noted. A total of 36.5 million coins are locked in the network, accounting for 30% of the total cryptocurrency supply.
The queue for validation has reached a record 3.7 million coins, with the waiting period for entry extending to 64 days.
Source: ValidatorQueue.
Ethereum Forecasts
Analysts view the current dynamics as a technical correction for retesting support levels before a potential resurgence.
An expert known as Annie pointed out that technical analysis using the Wyckoff method indicates a potential breakout for the cryptocurrency above the $10,000 mark.
Ethereum has now washed out what it needed to, and absorbed what it could.
— Annie 所长 (@web3annie) January 25, 2026
The main players are in position, the structure is complete, and all that’s left is a breakout.
Once the market starts, it will surge vertically, targeting: $10,000 $ETH.
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“The structure is complete; we just need to wait for the final breakout. Once the market starts, it will shoot up vertically. The target price for ETH is $10,000,” she wrote.
Another expert, Bitcoinsensus, shares this optimism, calling the possibility of Ethereum reaching $10,000 in the current cycle "still a feasible scenario."
Is a $10K $ETH on the table for this cycle?
— Bitcoinsensus (@Bitcoinsensus) January 21, 2026
Looking at previous price performance, we can see that #Ethereum has gone through massive upswings. 📈
Each cycle, however, we've experienced diminishing returns.
If we apply the same logic, we could see $ETH reach somewhere between… pic.twitter.com/MppxSbNpGz
Researcher Crypto Caesar specified the condition for such growth: the asset must break through the monthly resistance in the $4500-5000 range.
Sooner or later (a few years), $ETH — #Ethereum will break that red zone and we will reach 10K.
— Crypto Caesar (@CryptoCaesarTA) January 26, 2026
It’s very important to stay active in this space. When KOLs switch to other business ideas, you know the bottom is near.
It’s just a matter of time. On-chain season will come… pic.twitter.com/gO1vBIqVi7
Short-term forecasts are more cautious. After an unsuccessful test of the $3000 level, investor Ted Pillows pointed out the possibility of a drop to the $2800-2850 zone, which held up during testing last week.
Trader Daan Crypto Trades called the $2800 mark “the most significant area for Ethereum in its entire history.”
$ETH The number of times this $2.8K level has been tested on both sides this cycle is pretty insane.
— Daan Crypto Trades (@DaanCrypto) January 29, 2026
Most impactful price area for Ethereum in history by far. pic.twitter.com/5RM7wUY2jQ
“The number of tests at this $2800 level on both sides this cycle is truly impressive,” he wrote.
It’s worth noting that following the Fusaka upgrade, activity on the Ethereum mainnet surpassed that of L2 solutions.
Analysts at JPMorgan expressed doubts about the long-term sustainability of the second-largest cryptocurrency's blockchain performance.