Signal from whales: Is Ethereum about to replicate a 10x bullish move like in 2017?

One of the richest Ethereum whale groups in the market is actively accumulating ETH at the fastest rate since 2018, further reinforcing the argument that Ethereum's price may continue to trend upwards in the near future.

Ethereum whales accumulate over 2.15 billion USD

As of June 15, the net amount of ETH added to wallet addresses holding between 1,000 and 10,000 ETH has surged by more than 818,410 ETH (, equivalent to approximately 2.15 billion USD ), marking the highest inflow volume for this group in over 6 years.

Chart of the change in net positions of wallets holding between 1,000 and 10,000 ETH | Source: GlassnodeThis group of wallets – often associated with investment funds, early users, or whales – currently holds over 16 million ETH, compared to 11.87 million ETH about a year ago.

This strong accumulation phase coincided with a wave of institutional capital flowing into funds focused on ETH. In the week ending June 13, these funds attracted $583 million, bringing the total net inflow from the beginning of the year to $2.28 billion, according to CoinShares' weekly report.

Capital inflows into crypto funds by asset | Source: CoinShares## Is Ethereum repeating the "2017 scenario"?

The price of ETH has increased by 90% in the past two months, thanks to the optimistic sentiment surrounding the Pectra upgrade and the restructuring of the core development team. However, ETH remains trapped in a months-long accumulation channel. According to analyst Milkybull Crypto, the current price action is similar to the period following the 10x increase in 2017.

In the 2016–2017 period, ETH fluctuated in the price range of 10–20 USD after the DAO hack and the split event with Ethereum Classic. At that time, the market lacked clear momentum. However, after breaking through the accumulation zone, ETH skyrocketed to over 1,500 USD in less than a year, thanks to the booming ICO wave.

ETH/USD Weekly Price Chart | Source: TradingViewFrom 2024–2025, ETH will once again enter an Accumulation phase within the price range of 2,150 to 3,600 USD, while still maintaining stability above the 50-week EMA support line(red) and the 200-week EMA(blue).

Although the driving factors have changed (ETF, staking, tokenization), the technical pattern remains similar: ETH is "compressing price" under the resistance level, just like the phase before the largest breakout in the past.

Based on this scenario, the short-term price target for ETH is set around the 4,000 USD mark – coinciding with the upper trend line of the accumulation channel. Many analysts have previously set similar bullish targets for ETH.

As for Milkybull Crypto, there are even greater expectations. In May, he stated that "the target of 10,000 USD for ETH is entirely feasible."

Itadori