ETH to $4,000? Analysts Weigh Whale Purchases Against Correction Risks

Ether's multi-week climb toward the $4,000 level has faced resistance, with the token falling more than 3% to around $3,696. While bulls remain confident the uptrend is intact, recent price action has exposed some technical fragility — just as institutional buyers continue ramping up accumulation.

The latest ETH pullback follows two strong weeks of gains and comes amid growing discussion among analysts about whether the rally can continue without a broader correction. Technical indicators are beginning to flash red.

One X-based crypto analytics account, Front Runners, said ETH has now outperformed bitcoin for 14 consecutive days, calling the trend “unsustainable without consolidation.” They also flagged that “RSI is overheated” and suggested sentiment had turned euphoric.

Michaël van de Poppe echoed that caution, noting ETH had dropped to around $3,650 and warning of a potentially “violent correction.” "Andrew Crypto" offered a similar view, arguing that while ETH has shown “insane strength,” a correction is both healthy and likely following a rejection at a key resistance level.

Still, some analysts remain firmly bullish. Back on July 8, "Crypto Rand" predicted that “ETH to $4,000 is programmed. Sooner than later,” reflecting early confidence in the rally’s momentum. On-chain data may lend support to this outlook. According to CryptoQuant figures cited by Crypto Rover earlier today, whale buying activity has reached record highs.

That trend is underscored by the latest corporate buying figures from SharpLink Gaming (SBET), one of the largest ETH-holding public companies. In a press release issued today, SharpLink said it had purchased 79,949 ETH in the week ended July 20, the highest weekly tally since launching its treasury strategy in June. The firm now holds 360,807 ETH and said it has over $96 million in undeployed capital ready to buy more.

ETH’s price has been largely resilient in the face of macro uncertainty, helped in part by growing conviction among retail and institutional investors. However, analysts say the next leg higher may require a reset, as "Andrew Crypto" noted: “A chart without a correction isn’t a healthy chart."

According to CoinDesk Data, ether is trading at $3,696 at the time of writing, down 3.44% in the past 24 hours.

Technical Analysis Highlights

• ETH fell 6.11% over the 24-hour period from July 21 at 15:00 UTC to July 22 at 14:00 UTC, tumbling from a session high of $3,851.59 to a low of $3,623.60 — a $228.15 intraday range, according to CoinDesk Research's technical analysis data.
• Bearish momentum intensified early on July 22, with ETH plunging from $3,731.37 to $3,656.39 by 04:00 UTC. Trading volume surged to 353,275 units, well above the 24-hour average of 265,473.
• Resistance strengthened around the $3,730–$3,740 zone. A brief recovery lifted ETH to $3,698.04 by 10:00 UTC before renewed selling pressure capped gains. Volume spiked again to 438,487 units at 13:00 UTC, reinforcing bearish sentiment.
• ETH closed the session near its low at $3,647.45, suggesting continued downside risk heading into the next trading cycle.
• In the final hour of the session (13:09–14:08 UTC on July 22), ETH plunged $46.31 from $3,697.08 to $3,650.77, marking a 1.25% drop. The decline accelerated after 13:30 UTC, with a dramatic surge in volume to 24,478 units at 13:32 — nearly 10x the early-hour pace.
• Key support levels at $3,690, $3,670, and $3,650 were all decisively breached. ETH lost more than $50 between 13:30 and 13:55 UTC alone, as high-volume liquidations exceeded 20,000 units per minute.
• Attempts at recovery failed in the closing minutes, with ETH setting fresh intraday lows and confirming a broader bearish trend.

Disclaimer: Parts of this article were generated with the assistance from AI tools and reviewed by our editorial team to ensure accuracy and adherence to our standards. For more information, see CoinDesk's full AI Policy.