- Ethereum trades at about $3,200.
- Options traders are betting it tops $4,000 in August.
- Maelstrom CIO Arthur Hayes said it’s “ETH szn.”
Ethereum is in vogue.
The second largest cryptocurrency just vaulted past the $3,200 mark on the back of a 30% rally over the past two weeks.
And traders are feeling like Ether’s time has come.
“It’s [Ethereum season]” Arthur Hayes, the crypto investor and influencer, posted on X on Wednesday.
“What are we buying?” he continued. “The best in class for every DeFi vertical. Some charts are better than others, but they will all rip if Ether continues outperforming.”
Options traders
Options traders also reckon Ethereum has more legroom to grow. Options let traders bet on where an asset’s price will go without buying it outright.
Data from Deribit shows the largest open interest for ETH options expiring August 30 sits at the $4,000 strike price. And the sentiment gets even more bullish from there: September expiries are stacking up around $4,400, while December calls are clustered at $5,000 and beyond.
There’s a trio of tailwinds for Ethereum.
First, legislation. With three crypto bills in play in Washington this week, hopes are mounting that the industry will benefit from a clearly established regulatory regime.
There was a hiccup.
On Tuesday, Republican lawmakers delayed a landmark stablecoin bill, leading President Donald Trump to buttonhole holdouts to get with the programme and move the Genius Act forward.
Stablecoin action is also driving bullish sentiment. Wall Street strategist Tom Lee says the recent rise in Tether’s and Circle’s US dollar-backed coins is increasing demand for Ethereum at the infrastructure level.
More upside
That points to more upside, he said.
Then there’s Bitcoin. Capital rotation is a classic cycle play. With Bitcoin near all-time highs and consolidating, traders say they expect Ether and altcoins to surge.
In fact, that’s exactly what Lukas Enzersdorfer-Konrad, deputy CEO of crypto exchange Bitpanda, is waiting for.
“Once Bitcoin consolidates and investors begin rotating capital into higher-risk assets, we tend to see altcoins move more aggressively,” he told DL News earlier this week.
Finally, narratives are also starting to align.
Hayes called out “best in class” tokens across DeFi verticals, suggesting that if Ether continues to outperform, its ecosystem — including layer 2s and staking plays — could rally hard alongside it.
Whether it’s regulation, rotation, or a return to fundamentals, Ethereum is once again at the center of the crypto conversation.
If the current setup holds, traders may soon find themselves not just asking “What are we buying?” but “How high can this go?”
Crypto market movers
- Bitcoin is up 2.6% in value over the past 24 hours and is trading at $119,160.
- Ethereum is up 8.1% in the same period to $3,234.
What we’re reading
- ‘Legitimate software or a giant washing machine for dirty money’? Attorneys spar in second day of Roman Storm trial — DL News
- Crypto Bills Stall in House After Failed Procedural Vote — Unchained Crypto
- The biggest token launch of 2025 — Milk Road
- Cantor Fitzgerald SPAC Nears $4 Billion Bitcoin Deal With Adam Back: Report — Unchained Crypto
- Sam Altman’s World pauses operations in Germany as company overhauls iris-scanning stations — DL News
Pedro Solimano is DL News’ Buenos Aires-based markets correspondent. Got at a tip? Email the author at psolimano@dlnews.com.