Ethereum (ETH) has been facing a crucial moment as its price hovers between $2.7k and $2.4k since the beginning of May 2025. Despite the growing interest from institutional investors, Ethereum has failed to make significant gains in the market. The fully diluted valuation of the altcoin stands at around $304 billion, yet it has struggled to capitalize on the increasing demand.
One of the key indicators of institutional interest in Ethereum is the influx of cash into U.S. spot Ether ETFs. BlackRock’s ETHA has been leading the way with three consecutive months of cash inflow. In the last two months alone, U.S. spot Ether ETFs have seen a net cash inflow of over $1.4 billion. This surge in demand has led to a gradual decrease in the overall supply of Ether on centralized exchanges, which currently stands at approximately 14.77 million coins.
Despite the positive institutional interest, Ethereum’s price has failed to see a significant uptrend in the past two months. In fact, in the last 7 days alone, ETH price has dropped by over 8% to trade around $2,529. One of the main reasons for this lackluster performance can be attributed to the overheated futures short position, particularly on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME). Hedge funds and other institutional players have been heavily betting against Ethereum through CME futures, with short positions exceeding $1 billion.
These heavy short bets have outweighed the demand from spot Ether ETFs, putting significant downward pressure on the price of Ethereum. As a result, the altcoin has struggled to make significant gains despite the growing institutional interest. It remains to be seen how Ethereum will navigate through this challenging period and whether it will be able to break out of its current price range in the near future.