Ethereum price dips below $2,900 as whales sell

Ethereum fell through the $2,900 support level as selling by large holders increased and derivatives open interest declined. Focus now shifts to the Dec. 3 Fusaka upgrade, which aims to lower rollup costs and improve how blocks are produced on the network.

Spot trading activity picked up despite the price drop. Over the past 24 hours, exchange volume rose about 46% to roughly $30 billion. In derivatives, futures and options turnover climbed about 19% to around $33 billion, while open interest slipped about 4%, a mix that is consistent with traders closing positions rather than adding new risk.

On-chain and order flow readings point to a break in market structure. A Dec. 2 review of network data showed a clean breach of the $2,900 volume node that had acted as support for months. Renko-based signals have turned bearish, and technicians are watching a potential support area near $2,250 if selling extends. Exchange flow metrics also show a rising Bitcoin whale ratio, indicating larger holders account for a bigger share of inflows. Bitcoin’s influence on broader crypto trading can translate into additional pressure on Ethereum when whale activity rises.

Short-term technicals remain weak. Ethereum trades below major moving averages across multiple time frames. Bollinger Bands widened after the drop, the relative strength index sits near 33, and MACD stays negative, though flattening. Other momentum gauges are mixed, with the commodity channel index near neutral and stochastic oscillators in a lower range. Chart watchers cite initial support around $2,700 and deeper support near $2,250, while a sustained move back above $3,000 would ease downside pressure.

The Fusaka upgrade, scheduled for Dec. 3, is part of Ethereum’s scaling roadmap. The release targets lower costs and higher efficiency for layer-2 rollups by reducing data load and improving how the base layer handles temporary data. Peer Data Availability Sampling allows nodes to verify blob data without downloading full payloads, reducing resource needs and supporting greater throughput. The upgrade also expands blob capacity, revises fee mechanics, streamlines historical data storage, and refines proposer scheduling to make block production more predictable.

Developers expect these changes to reduce transaction costs for rollups and make better use of block space. Market participants will watch whether lower fees and smoother capacity lead to higher on-chain activity following the recent breakdown.

Despite the selloff, trading remains active across spot and derivatives venues, with rising volumes alongside falling open interest and a tilt toward defensive positioning by larger holders. Ethereum remains below its all-time high of $4,946, and near-term trading is tracking key support and resistance zones as investors assess the impact of the upcoming network changes and cross-market flows from Bitcoin.

As we reported earlier, CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju said ether was undervalued, citing ETHVal’s 12-model composite near $4,535, with most models above spot and only two below: a revenue yield view near $1,434 and a price-to-sales gauge around $923. Inflows to US spot ether ETFs were about $76.55 million, topping $71.37 million in bitcoin ETFs that day, while ether futures open interest rose and exchange reserves hit an all-time low. Ether also tested $3,000 after a two-month decline, nearly 40% below its 2024 high.