ETH/BTC ratio hits record low level since 2020
Ethereum falls to 4-year low vs Bitcoin as ETH/BTC ratio drops to 0.01787.
Ethereum’s market performance continues to deteriorate relative to Bitcoin, with the ETH/BTC ratio falling to its lowest level since January 2020.
The ratio now sits at 0.01787—a nearly 5% decline in the past 24 hours and a 24% drop over the last month. Over the past year, the pair has fallen more than 67%, reports Crypto News.
Bitcoin has risen by 34% year-over-year, while Ethereum has dropped 50%, underscoring the growing preference for BTC as a store of value amid macroeconomic uncertainty and shifting risk appetites. The divergence is increasingly drawing investor scrutiny, as Ethereum’s appeal weakens despite recent upgrades.
Rollup strategy weighs on ETH price action
Ethereum’s latest developments, including the March 2024 Dencun upgrade aimed at improving scalability, have yet to yield a meaningful boost in demand. Network fees have fallen to multi-year lows, DeFi activity continues to stagnate, and faster Layer-1 competitors like Solana and BNB Chain are pulling in fresh liquidity.
Moreover, Ethereum’s reliance on rollup-based scaling through layer-2 networks like Arbitrum and Base has led to a decline in on-chain activity and revenue for the mainnet. While these scaling solutions offer long-term benefits, the short-term impact on ETH demand and price performance has been negative.
Technical indicators also reflect the downtrend. ETH is currently trading around $1,587, with its relative strength index hovering near 40. Bulls must push the price above the 20-day moving average at $1,618 and break $1,650 to shift momentum. A decisive move beyond $1,700 could signal a return to bullish territory, while failure to hold $1,550 risks a fall toward $1,440.
Bitcoin dominance raises strategic questions for ETH
Despite Ethereum’s foundational role in DeFi and NFTs, the sharp ETH/BTC breakdown highlights the market’s shift toward Bitcoin amid growing economic and regulatory uncertainty. Unless Ethereum can regain traction with new catalysts or a resurgence in on-chain activity, it may continue to underperform in the current cycle.
Recently we wrote that U.S.-listed Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) recorded their strongest single-day net inflows in nearly three months on April 21, signaling renewed investor interest as crypto prices surged over the Easter weekend.
