According to Michaël van de Poppe, falling rates could drive strong upside momentum in altcoins, with $S highlighted after taking liquidity below prior lows and holding strong support, source: Michaël van de Poppe (@CryptoMichNL). According to Michaël van de Poppe, $S also has near-term fundamental catalysts as its testnet is about to go live featuring account abstraction and ETH-compatible Pectra elements, source: Michaël van de Poppe (@CryptoMichNL).

According to @glassnode, Ethereum's Realized Cap has risen sharply by $3.8 billion (+1.6%) from $240.8B on May 7 to $244.6B on May 19, following the Pectra upgrade. This increase reverses a three-month downtrend and indicates renewed capital inflow into ETH. For traders, this upward momentum in Realized Cap highlights growing investor confidence and potential for price appreciation, making ETH a key asset to watch for momentum strategies. Source: glassnode (May 20, 2025).

According to QCPgroup, Ethereum ($ETH) is showing strong trading signals as neutral funding rates and a put-heavy options skew coincide with a decisive price movement above $2,400, aligning with the Pectra network upgrade. Notably, there is an uptick in longer-dated option flows, which QCPgroup identifies as an early indicator of $ETH becoming a significant allocation target for traders and institutions. These options market dynamics suggest increasing confidence in medium- to long-term price appreciation, making Ethereum a key cryptocurrency to watch for allocation strategies in the current market cycle (Source: QCPgroup, Twitter, May 13, 2025).

According to Santiment, despite Ethereum not experiencing the immediate price pump that many traders expected after the Pectra upgrade, ETH has demonstrated resilience and positive price action by the week's end. The latest data highlight that Ethereum's strong network fundamentals and renewed investor confidence have contributed to its recovery, while Bitcoin maintains stability above key support levels. The report also notes a surge in meme coin trading volumes, indicating heightened retail investor activity and potential volatility spillover into major cryptocurrencies. These developments suggest that traders should monitor ETH and BTC for continued momentum, and consider meme coin trends as a potential indicator of broader market sentiment (Source: Santiment, May 9, 2025).

According to Santiment (@santimentfeed), Ethereum demonstrated the effectiveness of contrarian trading after the Pectra upgrade, when many retail traders sold off their ETH holdings due to disappointing immediate price performance. While the broader retail crowd exited positions, contrarian traders who held or accumulated ETH saw improved returns as the price stabilized and rebounded, highlighting a classic scenario where going against the majority can yield stronger results (Source: Santiment Twitter, May 8, 2025). This pattern suggests that sharp sell-offs driven by retail sentiment post-upgrade events can present strategic entry opportunities for traders focused on long-term value and rebound potential in the cryptocurrency market.

According to @VanessaGrellet_, the upcoming Pectra upgrade is expected to be bullish for both Ethereum and Zero-Knowledge (ZK) rollup technologies. This indicates potential positive price momentum for ETH and ZK-powered projects as traders anticipate scalability and efficiency improvements on the Ethereum network (Source: Twitter/@VanessaGrellet_). Market participants are closely watching for increased adoption of ZK solutions, which could drive higher trading volumes and liquidity across related crypto assets.