Key takeaways:

• Institutional ETH accumulation remains solid as ETFs and Bitmine Immersion lead a vigorous spot recovery.

• Tender DApp revenues and negative ETH funding rates suggest investors are skeptical about growth.

The price of ether (ETH) managed to stay above $2,300 on Wednesday, distancing itself from the lows of $1,940 recorded on March 29. The recent rally has pushed open interest in ETH futures to $25.4 billion, indicating increased demand for leveraged positions. This move suggests a potential change in ETH bulls’ momentum after 10 weeks of failed attempts to reclaim the $2,400 level.

To determine if bulls are driving the repositioning, the ETH futures funding rate must be assessed. As of Friday, the funding rate for ETH perpetual futures has not exceeded 5%, indicating a lack of confidence among bulls.

The indicator has repeatedly fallen below 0%, indicating excessive demand for bearish leveraged positions. In neutral conditions, the ratio should be between 5% and 10% to compensate for the cost of capital.

Still, it could be argued that such data confirms that Ether’s recent rally to $2,350 was supported by spot demand.

US-listed spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have raised net inflows of $248 million over the last 10 days, supporting the thesis of vigorous, bullish momentum driven by the Ether spot market. In parallel, digital asset treasurer Bitmine Immersion (BMNR US) announced its $312 million acquisition of ETH. Bitmine currently holds 4.87 million ETH, equivalent to $11.46 billion.

While institutional accumulation is generally a positive sign, Bitmine’s ETH shares are trading 13% below cost, according to CoinGecko data. Similarly, the value of U.S.-listed ETF assets under management was $13.7 billion on Wednesday, up from $20.5 billion three months earlier. Ether’s failure to regain $2,400 also came as the S&P 500 index jumped to a novel record high on Wednesday.

Tender activity of the Ethereum network, increased competition

Part of the reduced investor appetite for cryptocurrencies can be attributed to degenerating activity in decentralized applications (DApps). Nearly every corner of the cryptocurrency industry has been negatively affected by the 2026 bear market, including memecoin token launch platforms, synthetic derivatives trading, collateralized lending, digital collectibles, decentralized exchanges, and cross bridges.

Some positive touches incl prediction markets and real-world assets had no impact on Ethereum network activity. Investors are starting to question whether ETH is well-positioned to capture the eventual surge in demand for DApps, given the emergence of competing blockchains focused on solving specific problems, such as Hyperliquid and Plasma.

Related: ETH/BTC Ratio Hits 10-Week High as Ether Outperforms Bitcoin – Will Recent Price Highs Be Next?

Ethereum’s weekly revenue from DApps dropped to $11 million per week, down from $24 million in early February. The primary reason for investors to hoard ETH is the expectation of higher demand for on-chain processing and the resulting burn mechanism that creates incentives for long-term holding.

Despite increased demand for ETH futures, derivatives metrics did not raise. Potential causes include losses in Ethereum strategic reserve companies and increased competition in the DApps industry.