Market Wrap: Bitcoin Price Rises but Ether Outpaces as Merge Nears

ETH has been accelerating on higher than average trading volume.

AccessTimeIconAug 11, 2022 at 8:46 p.m. UTC
Updated Nov 14, 2022 at 6:01 p.m. UTC
10 Years of Decentralizing the Future
May 29-31, 2024 - Austin, TexasThe biggest and most established global hub for everything crypto, blockchain and Web3.Register Now

Bitcoin’s (BTC) price rose 2% in Thursday morning trading and held those gains throughout the day. The largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization remains above $24,000.

Ether’s (ETH) price climbed 4%. ETH’s push higher occurred on higher than average trading volume when compared to its 20-day moving average.

This article originally appeared in Market Wrap, CoinDesk’s daily newsletter diving into what happened in today's crypto markets. Subscribe to get it in your inbox every day.

As highlighted in Thursday morning’s First Mover Americas, Ether prices rose following the third and final dress rehearsal on Ethereum’s Goerli testing blockchain ahead of the eagerly anticipated Merge. The test’s success brought the Ethereum blockchain one step closer to converting from proof-of-work to a more energy-efficient proof-of-stake protocol.

Many Ethereum observers expect the conversion to proof-of-stake to have a deflationary effect on the supply of ETH, thereby slowing the rate at which the supply of the asset increases. Historically, a reduction of supply for any asset pushes its overall value higher.

Additionally, the move to proof-of-stake will allow ETH holders to generate cash flows by “staking” their ETH and earning rewards.

Traditional markets were mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.1% while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq composite declined 0.03% and 0.5%

In commodities, the price of crude oil was trading 2.2% higher while gold, a traditional safe haven asset during stressful economic times, declined by 0.6%.

Bitcoin (BTC): $24,164 +1.9%

Ether (ETH): $1,896 +3.9%

S&P 500 daily close: 4,207.27 −0.1%

Gold: $1,804 per troy ounce +0.4%

Ten-year Treasury yield daily close: 2.89% +0.1


Bitcoin, ether and gold prices are taken at approximately 4pm New York time. Bitcoin is the CoinDesk Bitcoin Price Index (XBX); Ether is the CoinDesk Ether Price Index (ETX); Gold is the COMEX spot price. Information about CoinDesk Indices can be found at coindesk.com/indices.

Throughout BTC’s Recent Rise, ETH Has Been the Stronger Performer

Instead of looking at the bitcoin price movement in U.S. dollar terms, today’s chart considers ether prices relative to BTC.

Notably, ETH prices in BTC terms have increased 41% since July 13. The move higher has come on average volume, while the Relative Strength Index (RSI is a proxy for momentum) has increased from 45.89 to its current 70.57. An RSI level of 50 is considered neutral, whereas a level in excess of 70 traditionally implies that the asset is “overbought.” An overbought reading implies that the magnitude of change in an asset has taken it past its fair market value, thereby making it a candidate to be sold.

Moreover, the 50-period exponential moving average (EMA) for the ETH/BTC pair crossed its 200-period EMA, completing a “golden cross.”

In technical terms, a golden cross occurs when the shorter term 50-day EMA crosses the longer-term 200 EMA, and is viewed as a precursor to a bull market. In this case, the signal implies that ETH is poised to outperform BTC.

The upcoming Ethereum Merge bears mention with this chart pattern because investors may be moving into ETH in anticipation of its completion. The question remains whether the move higher is a long-term development to a structural change or a short-term reaction to an upcoming event. If it is the latter, investors may be inclined to take profits in September, when the Merge is scheduled to occur.

Ethereum/Bitcoin daily chart (Glenn Williams Jr./TradingView)
Ethereum/Bitcoin daily chart (Glenn Williams Jr./TradingView)

Investors should consider past RSI levels above 70 and subsequent price behavior shortly after. The above chart highlights four past instances since May 2021 of the RSI reaching overbought levels.

The performance of ETH relative to BTC 30 days after each occurrence was -13%, -5%, -16%, and -3%, respectively. Since the most recent overbought reading (July 18), ETH prices are 11% higher, which appears to be an anomaly from past performance.

Not surprisingly, BTC’s market cap dominance has declined recently

While still the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, in recent weeks bitcoin has lost some of its dominance to ETH as the Merge date nears.

The “bitcoin dominance” chart highlights the decline.

BTC’s market cap dominance (TradingView)
BTC’s market cap dominance (TradingView)

Altcoin roundup

  • Energy Web Token Jumps 25%: The energy web token (EWT) jumped to a high of $3.18 Thursday after it was mentioned in a BlackRock (BLK) press release. The nonprofit that issues the coin received praise from the world’s largest asset manager for trying to reduce bitcoin mining emissions. Read more here.
  • Polkadot Now Has a Decentralized Version of 'Wrapped' Bitcoin: Interlay, a decentralized stablecoin network, has launched interBTC (iBTC) – a wrapped bitcoin token. One iBTC can be redeemed directly on the Bitcoin blockchain for one BTC. Read more here.
  • Ethereum’s Merge Now Has Tentative September Dates: A document circulated among Ethereum developers that showed there could be several scenarios for when the Merge on the Ethereum mainnet might occur. Likely dates include Sept. 15, Sept. 16 or Sept. 20. Read more here.

Relevant insight

Other markets

Biggest Gainers

Asset Ticker Returns DACS Sector
Ethereum ETH +3.9% Smart Contract Platform
Solana SOL +3.9% Smart Contract Platform
Loopring LRC +2.0% Smart Contract Platform

Biggest Losers

Asset Ticker Returns DACS Sector
Polkadot DOT −2.9% Smart Contract Platform
Gala GALA −0.9% Entertainment
Terra LUNA −0.8% Smart Contract Platform

Sector classifications are provided via the Digital Asset Classification Standard (DACS), developed by CoinDesk Indices to provide a reliable, comprehensive and standardized classification system for digital assets. The CoinDesk 20 is a ranking of the largest digital assets by volume on trusted exchanges.

Disclosure

Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.

CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.

Glenn Williams

Glenn C Williams Jr, CMT is a Crypto Markets Analyst with an initial background in traditional finance. His experience includes research and analysis of individual cryptocurrencies, defi protocols, and crypto-based funds. He owns BTC, ETH, UNI, DOT, MATIC, and AVAX

Author placeholder image

Jimmy is a CoinDesk markets reporter.


Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.