Ether’s (ETH) structural decline is anticipated to proceed, funding financial institution Customary Chartered (STAN) mentioned in a analysis report Monday slashing its 2025 year-end worth goal for the world’s second largest cryptocurrency.
Customary Chartered mentioned it now sees ether at $4,000 on the finish of the yr, down from $10,000 beforehand. Ether was buying and selling round $1,903 at publication time.
“Ether is at a crossroads,” the report mentioned, and whereas it “nonetheless dominates on a number of metrics,” this dominance has been falling for a while.
Layer 2 blockchains had been meant to enhance scalability on the Ethereum blockchain, however Customary Chartered estimates that Coinbase’s (COIN) Base has diminished ether’s market cap by $50 billion, and mentioned it expects this pattern to proceed.
Market forces might finally cease this structural decline, “particularly if tokenized real-world belongings had been to develop considerably,” as “ETH’s safety dominance means it ought to preserve its 80% share of this market,” wrote Geoff Kendrick, head of digital belongings analysis at Customary Chartered.
Nonetheless, “Solely a proactive change of business course from the Ethereum Basis – similar to taxing layer 2s – might obtain that now,” which the financial institution mentioned was unlikely.
Customary Chartered mentioned its expects the ETH/BTC ratio to say no to 0.015 by year-end 2027, the bottom stage since 2017.
The financial institution nonetheless sees a restoration within the ether worth from the present stage round $1,900, as a rally in bitcoin (BTC) is anticipated to elevate all digital belongings, however the cryptocurrency’s underperformance will proceed.
Learn extra: Ether Has Underperformed, however Whole Worth Locked on Ethereum Is Rising: Citi
