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Ethereum may be trading below the psychological $2,000 level, but whales are signaling confidence rather than caution.
According to on-chain analytics firm Santiment, wallets holding at least 100,000 ETH now control a combined 17.41 million ETH, the highest balance recorded over the past 9 weeks.
More notably, these whale addresses collectively own 22.03% of Ethereum’s circulating supply, a 10-week high that points to growing concentration among large holders.
On the price action front, Ethereum is currently trading at $1,973 on CoinGecko after slipping below the critical $2,000 threshold.
Nevertheless, instead of reducing exposure, whales appear to be steadily increasing their positions during the downturn.
 
What’s Brewing Beneath Ethereum’s Surface?
Why does whale accumulation matter? Well, it is closely monitored because large investors often build positions when uncertainty is high and sentiment is weak. Even though this doesn’t guarantee a price recovery, it can indicate that sophisticated market participants see long-term value despite short-term volatility.
Meanwhile, Santiment has identified a contrasting trend among retail traders. Rather than responding to Ethereum’s decline with fear and capitulation, many smaller investors have embraced a buy-the-dip mentality, flooding social media with calls to accumulate ETH at discounted prices.
However, there might be more to this optimism than meets the eye. Realistically, markets usually move against the prevailing retail narrative. As a result, caution should not be thrown to the wind.
What’s the takeaway? Well, Ethereum finds itself in a dilemma: on one side, whales are quietly accumulating, pushing ownership levels to multi-week highs amid heightened Wall Street involvement. On the other hand, retail traders remain unusually optimistic despite continued price weakness.