Ethereum whales double down despite $121 mln liquidation: Can $3K hold?

Ethereum has yet to make a decisive recovery after falling from its all-time high of $4,953 in September.

Present-time data shows the price hovering around $3,000, indicating that investors are currently at a critical decision point in the market.

Market data over the past day has largely moved against the bulls. However, liquidity inflow from bullish traders suggests they are not backing down.

AMBCrypto’s analysis puts these different factors together in an attempt to make sense of what could come next for Ethereum [ETH].

Whales double down

Onchain Lens, in a recent report tracking a popular crypto whale—an investor holding a large amount of funds—identified as “MachiBigBrother,” reveals a unique trading pattern.

This whale has doubled down on an ETH long position after losing about $1 million on a previous ETH trade, while recording a broader market loss of $21.3 million.

Source: CoinMarketMan

Currently, CoinMarketMan’s whale tracker shows that MachiBigBrother has opened a new ETH long position worth $14 million, suggesting a high level of confidence in a potential move higher.

While this may serve as a positive signal of a possible ETH rally, it is not a guarantee, especially considering the trader’s most recent losses. As such, this remains a high-risk move.

Going bullish could be tricky

The recent bet placed by the whale could prove tricky, as long-position holders are still facing heavy pressure in the market.

Liquidation data, which helps track potential price direction, shows that going long over the past 24 hours has been largely unprofitable.

Investors who opened long positions lost about $121.6 million worth of Ethereum, compared to short traders, who lost just $62.7 million.

This means long traders lost nearly twice as much as short traders within the same period, reinforcing the bearish short-term sentiment.

Source: CoinGlass

Likewise, a similar outlook is visible among traditional investors, as these participants sold a significant portion of their ETH holdings.

Total outflows reached $112.7 million over the last two trading days. This type of bearish activity often signals that the market is not yet fully bullish, and committing heavily at this stage carries unique risks for investors.

Bulls are going all in

Bulls, however, appear to be going all in on ETH. When combining Open Interest (OI) with the OI-Weighted Funding Rate, market data suggests that traders are positioning for a potential rally.

Open Interest, which measures the total value of outstanding derivatives contracts, shows that $2.3 billion in new capital entered the market over the past day.

Source: CoinGlass

Although this includes both long and short positions, the positive OI-Weighted Funding Rate suggests that much of the new capital is coming from bullish traders.

If the OI-Weighted Funding Rate continues to rise alongside increasing capital inflows, it could indicate that the market is gradually shifting toward a more bullish stance than previously observed.

Final Thoughts

• Crypto whales are increasing their ETH exposure following a broader long liquidation in the market, which totaled $121 million.
• New capital inflow into the market could indicate a possible green light and an incoming bullish week for ETH.