Ethereum’s native asset ETH was trading around $1,900 on Tuesday ahead of the anticipated Shapella update. The update, scheduled for April 12 at 11 pm UTC, is Ethereum’s most significant technological upgrade since the Merge. This upgrade promises to unlock staked Ether, which developers say will unlock over 16 million staked ETH (stETH) accumulated in a smart contract since December 2020. Should ETH break above the $2K level, it would be the first time Ethereum’s native coin saw such prices since August 2022.
Bitcoin, on the other hand, rose above $30,000 for the first time since June 2022, pushing MicroStrategy’s BTC bet into profits. BTC’s dominance over the crypto market also jumped to 45% after starting at 38% in January. This surge in price also nudged MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin bet into green, albeit only a few hundred dollars in profits. MicroStrategy, the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin, has an average purchase price of $29,803 per BTC for its massive 140,000 Bitcoin vault.
Ethereum’s latest update, dubbed Shapella, an acronym for Shanghai-Capella, is expected to enable withdrawals for staked ETH. Core developers like Tim Beiko confirmed that Shapella would ship to ETH’s mainnet on April 12, months after the Merge transitioned the network from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake. The upgrade will allow Ethereum validators and clients who have stockpiled ETH to withdraw their assets, an unlock that some believe could mount selling pressure on Ether’s market price.
The token traded around $1,900, data from CoinMarketCap showed on Tuesday. Ethereum’s second-largest token and the biggest altcoin in the market eyed $2,000 ahead of the Ethereum upgrade. Top Staked ETH Depositors by Nansen. ETH nosedived along with the broader crypto market following the failures of digital asset business giants like Terra and Three Arrows Capital, to name a few.
BTC pushed above $30,000 for the first time since June 2022. It’s the first time BTC dominance reached this high since May 2021. Dominance points to the size of BTC’s market cap relative to crypto’s total market cap, which includes every altcoin in the market.
In conclusion, the crypto market is currently experiencing a surge in prices, with Ethereum’s ETH and Bitcoin leading the pack. The anticipated Shapella update promises to unlock staked Ether, which developers say will unlock over 16 million staked ETH (stETH) accumulated in a smart contract since December 2020. While some believe that the unlock could mount selling pressure on Ether’s market price, others are optimistic that it could lead to further price surges.
