Track market-moving stories before they get noisy

Lee projected $363 million a year in staking revenue, based on a 2.63% seven-day yield from BitMine's own operations.

BitMine has acquired 15,112 ETH in the week to October 4, taking its treasury to 6,016,414 tokens, though that purchase was smaller than the 17,362 ETH BitMine bought a week earlier.

It was also the company’s smallest weekly buy since the week to August 16, when it added 9,926 ETH, according to its SEC filings. The treasury now equals 4.9% of the 122.1 million ETH in supply, short of BitMine’s 5% target.

Buyback Total Matches August Figure BitMine valued its ETH at $2,726 per token, using Coinbase prices. At that price, its ETH, other crypto, cash and equity stakes total $17.4 billion. The total also covers 214 Bitcoin (BTC), a $180 million stake in Beast Industries and $117 million of Eightco Holdings (ORBS).

Cash and marketable securities account for $643 million of that total. That figure fell from $672 million a week earlier and from $714 million on September 20.

“We believe that as crypto enters a cycle we view as a bull market, what is notable is Bitmine’s share price outperformance of ETH during the bear market of 2025-2026,” said BitMine Chairman Tom Lee.

Lee said the company’s shares fell 3% in the first nine months of this year, while ETH fell 10%, and he tied that gap partly to BitMine’s share buyback. He said the company has acquired 21 million of its own shares this year, and called it the largest equity buyback by any crypto treasury.

Moreover, BitMine’s August 17 update put repurchases since July 1 at 20.8 million shares, which they ran under a $4 billion authorization. None of the six weekly updates filed from August 24 to September 28 reported a repurchase.

New Staking Deal Sets 1.5% Fee Ethereum Towers had managed BitMine’s staking operations since March, in return for a share of net staking revenue. The two companies ended that agreement on September 3, as BitMine disclosed in a September 8 filing, with the company stating it incurred no material early termination penalty.

You may also like: Ethereum Foundation and OA Launch zkAPI for Private AI Payment EIP-8363 Authors Pull Ethereum Staking Reward Burn From Hegotá Upgrade MetaMask Confirms Security Incident and Begins Validator Exits to Protect Client Assets Likewise, since September 4, Ethereum Towers affiliate American Validator has advised MAVAN, the staking platform BitMine launched in March. The affiliate earns 1.5% of the rewards on ETH that BitMine stakes.

BitMine reported 5,067,309 ETH staked, or 84% of its Ether. That staked count has not moved in nine weekly updates, starting August 9.

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Trump: The reason for surging oil prices is no longer the Strait of Hormuz — the problem lies with refineries.

U.S. President Trump posted on social media that the reason for surging gasoline prices is no longer the Strait of Hormuz, as record levels of oil production are being achieved almost every day now. Instead, he cited the issue of "refineries": Russia’s refineries are being bombed by Ukraine, while U.S. refineries located in blue states such as California are being shut down by "Dumocrats".

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Bitcoin briefly fell below $85,000.

According to HTX market data, Bitcoin briefly dipped below $85,000 and is currently trading at $85,126.

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The yield on the 30-year U.S. Treasury note rose to 5.69%, marking a new high since 2002.

According to market data, the yield on the US 30-year Treasury bond has risen to 5.69%, hitting a new high since 2002.

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US CFTC Proposes First Formal Cryptocurrency Market Rules

According to The Wall Street Journal, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has proposed its first formal cryptocurrency market rules, introducing new CTX and CAM regulations to abandon its "enforcement-only" regulatory approach.

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A user downloaded a fake crypto wallet from Huawei’s official app store, leading to the theft of 170,000 USDT.

Douyin user Mr. Li Yi posted a video on the social media platform, claiming that on June 10 this year, he downloaded a "fake wallet" from Huawei’s official app store, leading to exposure of his mnemonic phrase and theft of 177,473 USDT. According to his account, the hacker converted the permissions of his wallet address to a multi-signature address, then carried out a second fraud by claiming he could "pay to unlock" the funds. After the victim transferred the money, all USDT in the address was siphoned off by the hacker. Since his video exposed the app’s violations, the app’s downloads on the official store plummeted. The hacker repeatedly organized online trolls to report his video, forcing it to be taken down, and privately attempted to negotiate a "conditional video deletion" agreement. The victim said that after a private investigation, he learned the fraudulent app had set up 5 servers in Hong Kong, paid to be listed on Huawei’s official app store and boosted its ranking, leading many victims to download it as the top search result. Due to relevant bans in mainland China, legitimate wallet apps cannot be properly listed on app stores, so any app that "cannot be officially listed but is indeed present in the store" is likely a counterfeit fraudulent app.

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Stablecoin Supply Surges $715.8M as Public Companies Add 3,342 BTC

Sept 28–Oct 4, 2026 #LookonchainWeeklyReport ?? Overview Stablecoin supply grew by $715.8M last week, DEX spot volume slipped and perp volume fell, while public companies added 3,342 BTC. ?? Stablecoin Market The total stablecoin market cap increased by $715.8M. ?? Spot &

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The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has authorized the Cboe BZX Exchange to list six new leveraged exchange-traded funds (ETFs) from Volatility Shares, including the first 3x leveraged Ethereum ETF and a similar Bitcoin product. This decision marks a pivotal step in US-regulated crypto investment, granting approval for leveraged crypto-based ETFs alongside equivalent products tracking gold, silver, crude oil, and natural gas.

Scope of the SEC’s ApprovalThe SEC granted the listing structure following a final order, permitting Cboe BZX to add the full suite of 3x daily leveraged funds issued by VS Trust, managed by Volatility Shares. The leveraged funds include 3x Bitcoin, 3x Ether, 3x gold, 3x silver, 3x crude oil, and 3x natural gas ETFs. Cboe submitted its request on August 10, 2026, published the proposal nine days later, and secured approval on October 2, 2026. These funds do not invest in spot assets but aim to deliver three times the performance of daily CME futures benchmarks for their respective commodities.

Instead of holding underlying assets, the funds use futures contracts traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. Products such as these are registered as commodity trusts under the Securities Act of 1933, not with the Investment Company Act of 1940. Performance resets occur daily, and leverage is recalibrated each day.

For example, if Ether’s price rises by 1% on a given day, the 3x Ether ETF seeks to gain 3% before fees, and conversely, a 1% daily decline in Ether would see the fund lose 3%. Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas described the approval as a milestone for Volatility Shares, already known for its 2x leveraged BITX and ETHU products. Launch will require each fund to receive effectiveness of its Form S-1 registration before trading can begin.

Approval for 3x leveraged crypto ETFs positions Volatility Shares at the forefront of US crypto innovation, joining a very small group of ETF issuers able to offer high-leverage products on regulated exchanges such as Cboe.

Industry Impact and ContextIn 2023, the SEC was still challenging Grayscale over its bid to convert the GBTC trust into a spot Bitcoin ETF. Following January 2024’s approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs, those products collectively amassed more than $100 billion in net inflows by late September 2026, according to SoSoValue, forming a path to wider acceptance for spot Ethereum ETFs.

The SEC’s green light for 3x futures-based products signals acceptance of higher leverage when it is implemented using CME-listed derivatives, alongside rigorous daily surveillance by Cboe BZX. For Ethereum, this product could help increase CME Ether futures liquidity, which CME Group reported at an average daily notional volume of $2.1 billion in the third quarter of 2026. Some analysts expect closer price discovery between Ether futures and spot markets on platforms such as Coinbase and Binance.

Mini dictionary: Volatility Shares, a US-based asset manager, is recognized for launching innovative leveraged and inverse exchange-traded products, such as BITX, the first US Bitcoin futures-based 2x leveraged ETF.

Product Structure and Competitive LandscapeThe new leveraged crypto ETFs are designed as short-term tactical trading instruments. They are used mainly by hedge funds and active traders seeking to manage risk or capitalize on market volatility, rather than by institutions making long-term investments. Similar leveraged commodity ETFs have been offered by providers such as ProShares and Direxion for years.

A key risk with daily leveraged funds is compounding: over periods longer than a single day, performance can diverge significantly from the intended 3x multiple of the asset’s return. In choppy or sideways markets, this can result in substantial value loss, even if the overall trend appears favorable. For example, a sequence where a 10% gain is followed by a 9.09% loss leaves the spot unchanged, but the leveraged ETF’s value declines.

Should Volatility Shares move ahead with the listings, it is expected to face competition from other ETF issuers like ProShares and Direxion, which already offer leveraged commodity ETFs. Industry observers note that the progression from initial denial to spot ETFs, and now from 2x to 3x leveraged products, is rapidly expanding Ethereum’s profile in regulated investment markets, but also raises challenges in investor education.

SEC approval of these daily leveraged ETFs is likely to boost both trading volumes and volatility in $ETH, but users should be mindful of the products’ short-term nature and compounding risks.

Ethereum wants your transactions to come with a built-in fact-checker. A new proposal would let on-chain code verify what a transaction actually changed and reverse the whole thing if the outcome breaks the rules a user set in advance.

The idea, called native transaction assertions, was highlighted by the Ethereum Foundation in a blog post on October 5, 2026. It targets one of the oldest and most stubborn weak spots in crypto: blind signing.

What the proposal actually does Blind signing is the crypto version of agreeing to terms and conditions you never read. A wallet pops up a request, the details are unreadable or unclear, and the user clicks approve anyway. Most of the time, nothing bad happens. When something does, it tends to be expensive.

The Ethereum Foundation framed the new work as a direct response to those risks, which were flagged under its Trillion Dollar Security initiative. That program already includes measures like Clear Signing, which focuses on making transaction requests legible before a user approves them.

Native transaction assertions work at a different moment in the process. Clear Signing tries to help you understand a transaction before it runs. Assertions check whether the result matched expectations after it runs.

The technical core is EIP-7906. It introduces three new opcodes to the Ethereum Virtual Machine: TXTRACE, TXDIFF, and EVENTDATACOPY. Opcodes are the low-level instructions the EVM understands, so adding new ones expands what smart contract code can see and do.

In this case, the new instructions give on-chain code a way to inspect the real state changes a transaction produced. That shifts verification from what a transaction claims it will do to what it demonstrably did.

How it plugs into EIP-8141 EIP-7906 does not stand alone. It relies on the framework laid out in EIP-8141, known as the frame transaction format.

Frame transactions break a single transaction into distinct segments, or frames. EIP-7906 adds a new one to that structure: a POST_TX frame.

The POST_TX frame operates as a static call during execution. A static call is a read-only operation, meaning it can examine state but cannot modify it. If the conditions defined in that frame are not met, the transaction’s effects can be reverted.

Where it stands, and when it could ship Nothing here is live yet. EIP-7906 remains in draft status.

The goal is to include it in the Hegotá upgrade, which is anticipated for deployment in 2027. Preliminary demonstrations have already been run on a development network, which suggests the mechanics function outside of a whitepaper.

EIP-7906 also depends on EIP-8141, so its fate is tied to whether the frame transaction format makes the cut too.

Why this matters beyond the code Native assertions move part of the burden of signing risk into the base layer. If the protocol can enforce outcome checks directly, users are less dependent on any single wallet getting its display logic perfect.

For institutions and businesses, the appeal is easy to see. Organizations moving large sums tend to want guarantees, not best efforts. A mechanism that can automatically reverse a transaction whose results fall outside defined parameters fits neatly into the kind of risk controls those players already use elsewhere.

Developers will also need to figure out how ordinary users define the rules their transactions must satisfy, since a safety net that requires expert configuration may end up protecting mostly experts. The usability layer built on top of EIP-7906 could matter as much as the opcodes themselves.

Every new opcode expands the surface area that must be implemented and audited across multiple Ethereum clients. Security improvements that introduce new edge cases have to justify that trade.

Watch whether EIP-7906 moves out of draft, whether EIP-8141 secures a place in Hegotá, and whether more devnet testing follows the early demonstrations.

Disclosure: This article was edited by Estefano Gomez. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.

Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC), Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) and Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) are flashing short-term sell signals as one prominent analyst points to a recent "Sunday pump, Monday dump" pattern.

Sunday Pump, Monday Dump?Crypto chart analyst Ali Martinez noted on Monday that Bitcoin’s Sunday rallies were followed by Monday pullbacks, while Sunday declines were followed by rebounds.

The pattern, which persisted from Aug. 29 through Sept. 28, puts another potential Monday pullback in focus.

Technical indicators back up the pattern:

The TD Sequential has flashed a sell signal on BTC’s four-hour chart. Each of the previous four comparable signals was followed by a price correction. Ethereum is showing the same four-hour sell signal, with its previous two signals followed by declines of 5.40% and 3.31%. Solana has also triggered a four-hour TD Sequential sell signal. Its previous three comparable signals preceded corrections of 2.44%, 5.76% and 5.30%. But Long-Term Targets Stay Bullish…While Martinez sees near-term correction risk, his longer-term technical outlook remains bullish for Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana.

Bitcoin’s two-year rising channel puts its previous high near $125,000 as the first major test, Martinez highlighted on Sunday. A decisive breakout could bring the channel’s upper boundary near $190,000 into focus as a potential cycle target.

Ethereum faces resistance near $5,000 on its longer-term channel, with a breakout potentially targeting $8,800.

Solana’s monthly chart, meanwhile, appears to be forming a cup-and-handle pattern.

A monthly close above the $295 neckline could strengthen the bullish case, with the pattern projecting a potential target near $2,750.

…As October Starts Stronger Than UsualOn Oct. 5, CryptoQuant data shows Bitcoin has outperformed during what has historically been October’s weakest three-day stretch.

Bitcoin slipped just 0.14% from Oct. 1 through Oct. 3, versus the historical average decline of 0.66%. It traded near $85,132 on Oct. 4, up 1.86% from September’s close.

The resilience follows a strong September, when Bitcoin gained 6.39% versus its historical average decline of 4.02%.

Image: Shutterstock

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© 2026 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

Bitcoin approaches resistance as Ethereum and XRP recover, while Sui advances and Cardano gains nearly 11%. Key crypto levels to watch for October 5, 2026.

Asset Price 24-hour change Aggregate 24-hour volume Rank Bitcoin $86,081 +1.49% $20.60 billion 1 Ethereum $2,716.43 +0.81% $7.49 billion 2 XRP $1.51 +1.39% $1.42 billion 5 Sui $1.23 +4.83% $827.00 million 25 Cardano $0.269078 +10.78% $838.82 million 16 Bitcoin MACD Improves Below $87,330 Resistance Bitcoin’s completed October 4 daily candle opened at $84,743, reached $86,737 and closed at $86,515—a 2.09% advance. The close returned BTC to the upper part of its recent range but did not clear resistance between $87,086 and $87,330.

BTC Price Analysis 2026 10 05 On the completed four-hour candle ending October 5 at 00:00 UTC, MACD using 12, 26, and 9 exponential periods reached 374.95, above its 277.40 signal line. The histogram expanded to 97.54 from 22.61.

This confirms improving short-term momentum, but not a price breakout. BTC price needs a daily close above $87,330 to confirm range expansion toward the upper-$88,000 region and $89,000. A rejection followed by a close below $84,441 would invalidate the immediate bullish setup and reopen $83,898, followed by $82,580–$82,950.

Ethereum Holds Above Its Bollinger Midline Ethereum’s price October 4 candle closed at $2,726.64 after trading between $2,686.33 and $2,736.97. The 1.48% daily rise left ETH above the $2,647.91 midline of its daily Bollinger Bands, calculated with a 20-day simple moving average and two population standard deviations.

ETH Price Analysis 2026 10 05 The upper band stands near $2,852.76 and the lower band near $2,443.06. ETH remains inside that envelope, making the setup constructive but not a confirmed breakout.

A daily close above $2,737–$2,768 would strengthen the case for a move toward $2,787–$2,804. The upper band would become the next dynamic reference if momentum persists. A close below $2,635 would weaken the structure, bringing the Bollinger midline and $2,610–$2,583 back into focus.

XRP Reclaims Its 20-Day Moving Average XRP closed October 4 at $1.52 after trading from $1.49 to $1.53. The close was 2.01% above the open and remained above the rising 20-day simple moving average at $1.466.

XRP Price Analysis 2026 10 05 The moving-average recovery improves the short-term structure, although the completed candle stopped at the lower edge of resistance. XRP needs a daily close above $1.56 to confirm a break of the $1.53–$1.56 supply zone. That would shift attention to $1.61 and $1.66.

A close below the 20-day average—and especially below $1.45—would invalidate the recovery and expose $1.41, followed by $1.37. XRP remains range-bound until one of these closing conditions is met.

Sui Holds the First Fibonacci Retracement Sui’s completed October 4 candle advanced 2.54%, closing at $1.21 after testing $1.26.

SUI Price Analysis 2026 10 05 The Fibonacci map uses the upward swing from the September 15 low of $0.675641 to the September 27 high of $1.29. This places the 23.6% retracement at $1.1450, the 38.2% level at $1.0553, the midpoint at $0.9828, and the 61.8% retracement at $0.9103.

Price has held above the first retracement, preserving the recovery structure, although $1.26–$1.29 remains unbroken resistance. A completed daily close above $1.29 would confirm a breakout. Only after that confirmation would the 1.272 extension near $1.4571 become a conditional upside reference.

A daily close below $1.1450 would invalidate the immediate bullish setup and expose $1.0553, followed by $0.9828. The live $1.23 quote remains an intraday observation rather than completed-candle confirmation.

Cardano RSI Rises but Price Still Needs a Closing Breakout Cardano produced the strongest rolling move in this five-asset group. Its completed October 4 candle rose 6.40%, opening at $0.243888 and closing at $0.259507 after reaching $0.267926.

ADA Price Analysis 2026 10 05 The 14-period four-hour RSI, calculated with Wilder’s smoothing, increased to 64.48 on the completed candle ending at 00:00 UTC, up from 57.91. Momentum improved without entering the conventional overbought region above 70.

ADA’s live quote of $0.269078 was above the October 4 high at the cutoff, but that intraday move was not yet a confirmed closing breakout. A daily close above $0.2679, with follow-through through $0.2750, would confirm continuation.

A reversal below $0.2585 would weaken the attempt, while a close below $0.2425 would invalidate the immediate recovery and expose $0.237–$0.230.

Ethereum’s standing in the liquidity rankings has taken a meaningful hit. A CoinGecko analysis of order-book depth across eight major centralized exchanges shows Ethereum’s median market depth sitting at $13 to $14 million, which puts it at just 35 to 45% of Bitcoin’s liquidity. A year ago, Ethereum was holding above 60% of Bitcoin’s level.

Bitcoin’s order book is doing a lot of heavy lifting Bitcoin’s median aggregate depth has reached $29 million on the bid side and $37 million on the ask side, roughly 50% higher than the figures recorded in 2025. Order-book depth in this analysis is measured at approximately 0.15% from the mid-price, translating to about $100 on either side for Bitcoin and $3 for Ethereum.

Binance leads liquidity for both assets across the exchanges studied. At the other end of the spectrum, MEXC’s liquidity sits at approximately $450,000, making it a clear outlier in the dataset.

Why the gap widened The contrast isn’t just that Ethereum got worse. It’s that Bitcoin got substantially better while Ethereum’s liquidity remained roughly flat in absolute terms. That combination mechanically pushes the ratio down.

Increased institutional interest in Bitcoin, partly channeled through spot exchange-traded products, is one plausible driver of the deeper order books on the Bitcoin side. Ethereum, despite its own spot ETF approvals, has not attracted the same scale of order-book commitment.

What traders and investors should watch The gap between Ethereum’s liquidity and Bitcoin’s is now wide enough to influence how large trades get structured. Algorithmic traders and institutions that slice orders across venues will need to account for Ethereum’s shallower book, particularly during periods of elevated volatility when spreads tend to widen further.

For context, the Traders Union report covering this data was published on September 30, 2026. The dynamics it captures reflect a market structure that has been shifting steadily rather than breaking in a single moment.

Disclosure: This article was edited by Vivian Nguyen. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.

Analysis: Bitcoin short-term holders continue to add to their positions, with their average cost rising to $74,100.

CryptoQuant analyst Axel Adler Jr. noted that as of October 4, Bitcoin holdings of short-term holders increased by 87,000 coins over the past 30 days to 3.94 million, marking the seventh consecutive week this metric has outpaced the prior month’s level. The indicator has remained positive since August 18, signaling a rise in Bitcoin supply that has changed hands over the past six months. Currently, short-term Bitcoin holders have an average cost basis of roughly $74,100, with an overall unrealized profit of around 15%—nearly unchanged from a week ago, but below the September 22 phase high of 19%. Meanwhile, their average cost has climbed by approximately $1,000 week-over-week, indicating that as Bitcoin’s price rises, the entry cost for short-term holders is also increasing. The $74,100 level is a key threshold to monitor now. If Bitcoin drops below this level, short-term holders as a whole will flip into unrealized losses; if the 30-day holding change also turns negative, it means this group’s position size is starting to shrink, which could further erode market structure.

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Economist: Eurozone services sector growth accelerates, fueling rate hike expectations.

S&P Global Market Intelligence Chief Business Economist Chris Williamson said: "The euro zone’s service sector growth has hit its fastest pace since last November, signaling that the region’s economic recovery is accelerating, with growth momentum spreading from manufacturing to broader sectors. The composite PMI survey signals show the euro zone economy is currently expanding at a quarterly rate of 0.4% and is on track for further growth in the fourth quarter. Service sector activity in both Germany and France saw its first signs of growth since March, marking their respective first service sector expansions this year; Italy, meanwhile, expanded for the fourth consecutive month, outperforming Spain, which also posted its strongest growth in four months. Overall growth in September hit its fastest pace in five years. At the same time, the survey showed input price inflation rose to 4%, indicating the euro zone’s inflation is approaching the European Central Bank’s 2% target ceiling. Combined with the acceleration in economic growth shown by the PMI, these data suggest mounting pressure on the European Central Bank to adopt more aggressive monetary tightening measures."

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DBS: NVIDIA’s Valuation Remains Low, AI Stocks Far From Being in a Bubble

DBS Group Chief Investment Officer Hou Wey Fook said that Nvidia’s price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio and projected 70% earnings growth next year indicate that AI-driven tech stocks are still far from forming a bubble. Aggregate data shows Nvidia’s current 12-month forward P/E ratio stands at 17x. Hou compared this to Cisco Systems’ valuation of around 100x before the dot-com bubble burst. He told TV interviews: "If we take Nvidia as the representative company in the AI sector, which currently has a P/E ratio of only in the teens, how can we call this a bubble?" He added that semiconductor and AI investments still have "tailwinds". However, Hou recommended adopting a "barbell strategy" to "control overall portfolio volatility": allocating to tech stocks on the growth end, while pairing with investment-grade fixed-income assets to deliver stable returns, and using hedge funds and gold as intermediate risk-diversification tools.

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Hong Kong’s Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau: Draft ordinance amendment to be submitted within the year, establishing a licensing regime for virtual asset trading and custody services.

Hong Kong Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui stated that amid the advancement of fintech innovation, the government will submit a draft ordinance amendment this year to establish a licensing regime for virtual asset trading, custody, advisory, and management services. The Hong Kong Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau, in collaboration with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), is also working on optimizing the legal framework to drive the tech and telecommunications sectors to step up detection and removal of fraud-related content, including AI-generated fraud.

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某以太坊IC0巨鲸再度卖出1.333万枚ETH

Per Lookonchain monitoring, early Ethereum participant "0xa2F6" sold 13,330 ETH after six months of inactivity, worth roughly $36.37 million. This crypto OG bought 170,000 ETH at a low price of $0.31 via Ethereum's ICO, with a total cost of just $52,700. The batch of ETH is now valued at approximately $461.4 million.

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Ethereum OG "0xa2F6" Sells 13,330 $ETH ($36.37M) After 6-Month Hold

Ethereum OG "0xa2F6" sold another 13,330 $ETH($36.37M) after 6 months. This OG bought 170,000 $ETH through the ICO at a low price of $0.31 (costing $52.7K, now worth $461.4M).

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Ethereum’s native token, ether, saw a stronger price performance than bitcoin in the third quarter of the year. However, data from CoinGecko shows that while ether’s price climbed, its market liquidity declined compared to bitcoin, making it more difficult for traders to move larger sums without affecting prices.

Ether price performance and thinning market depthEther’s price surged by 70% during the third quarter, outpacing bitcoin’s 42% increase over the same period. Despite these gains, liquidity in ether trading deteriorated. According to CoinGecko, ether’s median daily market depth between July 6 and September 30 stood at just 35% to 45% of bitcoin’s, a significant decrease from at least 60% in the same period last year. CoinGecko described this as “a stark drop from last year’s figures.”

Market depth, a standard liquidity measure, represents the total dollar value of buy and sell orders on exchanges within a set range of the current price. Deeper markets allow larger trades without causing significant price swings, while thinner markets are more sensitive to big orders.

During the quarter, ether maintained a depth of $13 million to $14 million within 0.15% of its market price. This figure reflects how much capital was available in orders close enough that clearing them would only move the token’s price slightly. Such liquidity is crucial for both routine and sizable transactions.

CoinGecko’s findings challenge the common assumption that rising prices bring increased trading activity and deeper order books. Ether’s case demonstrated the opposite, as improvements in price did not translate into greater liquidity.

During the report period, CoinGecko noted, “ETH remains fairly liquid at this range [within 0.15% of the market price], with most exchanges maintaining over $1 million in depth on each side.”

Broader liquidity trends across major tokensEther is not alone in experiencing thinner liquidity. Solana’s SOL token, viewed by many as a key Ethereum competitor, also saw reduced market depth. CoinGecko measured SOL’s liquidity within a broader 2% range of the market price.

The study found that SOL’s depth within 2% of the market price fell from about $28 million per side last year to around $20 million this year. Depth at this distance from the market price offers insight into how much buying or selling pressure the market can digest before triggering substantial price changes. For solana, declining depth means the token may see more pronounced swings in turbulent trading.

XRP, a payments-focused digital asset, maintained total depth near $30 million. However, its order books favored buyers, with bids totaling close to $18 million and asks at $14 million. XRP’s market capitalization is roughly 40% larger than solana’s, yet SOL retains deeper order books within 2% of its price.

CoinGecko attributed this to solana’s higher trading volumes, noting that SOL trades about 25% more than XRP on an average day.

TokenQ3 Price ChangeMarket Depth (2024)Market Depth (2023)Market Cap Relative to SOLEther (ETH)+70%$13-14M within 0.15%At least 60% of BTC depthLarger than SOLBitcoin (BTC)+42%100% reference100% referenceN/ASolana (SOL)Not specified$20M within 2%$28M within 2%Smaller than XRPXRPNot specified$30M within 2%Not specified40% bigger than SOLCoinGecko is a leading global cryptocurrency data and analytics platform that tracks price, volume, and market metrics for thousands of tokens, providing real-time insights for both retail and institutional market participants.

Mini dictionary: CoinGecko, a crypto analytics provider offering market data, price tracking, and in-depth reports on digital assets and exchanges.

For SOL, CoinGecko observed, “The overall liquidity for SOL has shrunk considerably since 2025.”

Ethereum Price Analysis: ETH Holds Bullish Structure, but $2.8K Remains the Key Hurdle

Updated Published

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Ethereum's staking exit queue hit its longest of 2026. (Shaurya Malwa/CoinDesk)Summary

Ether waiting to leave Ethereum staking surged more than fivefold in three days, reaching about 851,000 ETH on Oct. 2 after MetaMask began withdrawing validators following a security incident.About 786,000 ETH, worth more than $2 billion, remained in the exit queue Monday, with an estimated wait of nearly 14 days because Ethereum limits how quickly validators can leave.MetaMask said it found no evidence that wallets or customer funds were affected, while Lido expects the withdrawn ether to be gradually restaked in a process that could take up to 45 days.Ether ETH$2,724.46 waiting to leave Ethereum’s staking system jumped more than fivefold in three days last week, pushing the exit queue to its longest wait of 2026.

The queue reached roughly 851,000 ETH on Oct. 2 after MetaMask, a cryptocurrency wallet provider that also runs staking services, began withdrawing validators as a precaution following a security incident affecting part of its infrastructure.

About 166,000 ETH was waiting to exit on Sept. 29, per a CoinDesk analysis of the data. By Oct. 2 that had climbed to roughly 851,000 ETH, about 2% of the 43.6 million ETH staked and well above the roughly 476,000 ETH reached during a surge in May.

About 786,000 ETH, worth just over $2 billion, was still waiting as of Monday Asian morning, with an estimated wait of nearly 14 days.

Staking lets holders earn rewards by committing ether to validators, the computers that check Ethereum transactions. The network limits how quickly validators can join or leave to prevent sudden changes to its security.

At current limits, about 57,600 ETH can enter and about 57,600 ETH can exit each day, so large moves build up as queues. Coins that leave then go through a separate withdrawal process before they reach their owners' wallets.

Most of the jump in withdrawals has come from MetaMask. The company, best known for its cryptocurrency wallet, also runs validators for Lido, a service that pools users' ether for staking. At the time, Ethereum security researcher Kaden estimated the precautionary exits covered roughly 17,000 validators holding about 523,000 ETH, figures MetaMask has not confirmed.

MetaMask disclosed a security incident on Sept. 30 and began taking affected validators out of service. An Oct. 1 update said its investigation had found no indication that wallets or customer funds had been affected.

That makes most of the exit queue a temporary detour for one operator's coins. Lido expects the ether to return gradually as the affected validators leave, their balances are withdrawn and the coins enter staking again. It estimated the whole process could take up to about 45 days, with affected validators missing rewards while they are out of service.

"No action is required from stETH holders," Lido said last week, referring to the token that represents users' stake in the service.

Lido expects the last affected MetaMask validators to stop staking by Oct. 7, after which their coins join the queue to start staking again.

In the meantime, demand to start staking has been cooling separately. About 1.5 million ETH, worth roughly $4 billion, was waiting to enter on Monday, with an estimated wait of roughly 25 days, down from about 2 million ETH and a wait of about 35 days in early September.

Read More: MetaMask security incident forces Ethereum staking exits, no funds at risk

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12345678910The Definitive Stablecoin Landscape Series: Asia Pacific

The Definitive Stablecoin Landscape Series: Asia Pacific

As stablecoins move into regulated finance, APAC is becoming a key proving ground. This report maps the region’s rules, use cases, and RLUSD’s role.

Sep 15, 2026

As stablecoins move into regulated finance, APAC is becoming a key proving ground. This report maps the region’s rules, use cases, and RLUSD’s role.

Why it matters:

As stablecoins move into regulated finance, APAC is becoming a key proving ground. This report maps the region’s rules, use cases, and RLUSD’s role.

Ether had a great quarter. Its order books did not.

Ethereum’s native token posted a gain of nearly 70% in the third quarter of 2026, comfortably beating Bitcoin’s roughly 42% climb. But a CoinGecko analysis, cited by CoinDesk on October 5, 2026, found that the liquidity underneath that rally got noticeably thinner as prices rose.

A big rally on a shallower foundation The CoinGecko data covers the period from July 6 to September 30. Over that stretch, ether outpaced Bitcoin by close to 28 percentage points on price.

CoinGecko measured median daily market depth within ±0.15% of the mid-price. By that measure, ETH’s depth now sits at only 35% to 45% of Bitcoin’s equivalent level. In the comparable period of 2025, that ratio was at least 60%.

In absolute terms, ETH’s depth in that tight band averaged around $13 to $14 million across the major exchanges studied. The analysis drew on data from eight major centralized exchanges.

Most major trading venues still maintained more than $1 million in depth on both the bid and ask sides. Retail traders buying or selling modest amounts are unlikely to notice much difference.

With less money parked near the current price, big orders have to reach further up or down the book to get filled, which pushes the price around more than they might like.

Why this pattern is unusual Normally, rising prices and climbing trading volumes go hand in hand with deeper liquidity. Ether’s third quarter broke that pattern. Prices rose, volumes increased, and depth still contracted relative to Bitcoin.

Ether is not alone in this. CoinGecko found that Solana showed a similar decline in liquidity over the period. XRP went the other way. Its total depth held steady, with the balance tilted predominantly toward buyers.

On price, ether closed the quarter near $2,689 after touching intraday highs near $2,775. Bitcoin ended the period trading between $83,640 and $86,000, depending on the cutoff used.

What may have powered the move The research points to returning inflows into US spot ETH ETFs as a likely driver of the rally. Net inflows reached approximately $3.1 billion, a reversal after outflows earlier in the year.

ETF demand can push prices higher without necessarily adding depth to the exchange order books that CoinGecko tracks. Fund flows and resting limit orders are not the same thing.

What this means for traders and the market Thinner books mean higher slippage, the gap between the price you expect and the price you actually get. A trade of a given size in ETH is now more likely to nudge the market than an equivalent trade in BTC.

Desks executing big ETH orders may need to split trades into smaller pieces, spread them across venues, or stretch them out over time.

Shallow books can amplify rallies, because buyers chew through sell orders quickly. They can amplify selloffs for exactly the same reason.

The Solana parallel is worth watching. If thinning liquidity is showing up across several major non-Bitcoin assets at once, it raises the question of whether market makers are concentrating their capital more heavily in BTC. The XRP exception shows the trend is not universal.

Disclosure: This article was edited by Vivian Nguyen. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.

The crypto market will welcome tokens worth $1.11 billion in early October 2026. Major projects, including Hyperliquid (HYPE), Ethena (ENA), and Aptos (APT), will release significant new token supplies. 

These unlocks could introduce market volatility and influence short-term price movements. So, here’s a breakdown of what to watch.

1. Hyperliquid (HYPE) Unlock Date: October 6 Number of Tokens to be Unlocked: 3.75 million HYPE Released Supply: 474.83 million HYPE Total Supply: 1 billion HYPE Hyperliquid is a leading decentralized perpetual futures exchange built on its own Layer-1 blockchain. It offers high-performance trading with low latency, on-chain order books, and sub-second transaction finality.

On October 6, the team will unlock 3.75 million HYPE worth $340 million. The tokens account for 1.69% of the released supply.

HYPE Crypto Token Unlock in October. Source: TokenomistThe team previously announced that the unlocked supply is going to one institutional buyer.

2. Ethena (ENA) Unlock Date: October 5 Number of Tokens to be Unlocked: 171.88 million ENA  Released Supply: 9.15 billion ENA Total Supply: 15 billion ENA Ethena is a synthetic dollar protocol built on Ethereum (ETH). The protocol’s flagship product is USDe, a synthetic dollar stablecoin. Furthermore, ENA is the protocol’s governance token.

The team will release 171.88 million ENA tokens on October 5. The tokens, worth $41.52 million, account for 1.88% of the released supply.

ENA Crypto Token Unlock in October. Source: TokenomistEthena will award 93.75 million tokens to core contributors. In addition, investors will receive 78.13 million ENA.

3. Aptos (APT) Unlock Date: October 11 Number of Tokens to be Unlocked: 11.31 million APT Released Supply: 1.76 billion APT Total supply: 2.55 billion APT (Y2035) Aptos is a Layer-1 blockchain platform designed for scalability, security, and efficiency in decentralized applications (dApps) and Web3 ecosystems. It utilizes the Move programming language to enable high-throughput transactions and smart contract execution.

Aptos will release 11.31 million tokens on October 11. The tokens are worth $9.06 million. It represents 0.64% of the released supply.

APT Crypto Token Unlock in October. Source: TokenomistThe team will award 3.96 million APT to core contributors. The community and investors will get 3.21 million and 2.81 million tokens, respectively. Additionally, Aptos will allocate 1.33 million tokens to the foundation.

In addition to these three, Aerodrome Finance (AERO), Movement (MOVE), and Babylon (BABY) will also see a new supply entering the market this week.

Hong Kong’s Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau: Draft ordinance amendment to be submitted within the year, establishing a licensing regime for virtual asset trading and custody services.

Hong Kong Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui stated that amid the advancement of fintech innovation, the government will submit a draft ordinance amendment this year to establish a licensing regime for virtual asset trading, custody, advisory, and management services. The Hong Kong Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau, in collaboration with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), is also working on optimizing the legal framework to drive the tech and telecommunications sectors to step up detection and removal of fraud-related content, including AI-generated fraud.

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某以太坊IC0巨鲸再度卖出1.333万枚ETH

Per Lookonchain monitoring, early Ethereum participant "0xa2F6" sold 13,330 ETH after six months of inactivity, worth roughly $36.37 million. This crypto OG bought 170,000 ETH at a low price of $0.31 via Ethereum's ICO, with a total cost of just $52,700. The batch of ETH is now valued at approximately $461.4 million.

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Ethereum OG "0xa2F6" Sells 13,330 $ETH ($36.37M) After 6-Month Hold

Ethereum OG "0xa2F6" sold another 13,330 $ETH($36.37M) after 6 months. This OG bought 170,000 $ETH through the ICO at a low price of $0.31 (costing $52.7K, now worth $461.4M).

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Nikkei 225 index closed up 2.4%

According to Bitget market data, the Nikkei 225 index closed up 1637.40 points, or 2.40%, at 69946.86 points on Monday, October 5.

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Trader 0x914b loses $471K shorting ETH, flips to 25x long on 23,734 $ETH with $2,650 liquidation price

Trader 0x914b lost $471K shorting 14,976 $ETH($40.97M) and then flipped to long. He opened a 25x long on 23,734 $ETH($64.3M), with a liquidation price of $2,650.

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Morgan Stanley: Half of Russell 3000 constituents have entered a bear market, with US Treasury volatility set to determine the future trajectory of US stocks.

Morgan Stanley’s chief equity strategist Mike Wilson said in a recent report that U.S. stock indexes remain near record highs, but internal market divergence is stark. Some 51% of Russell 3000 constituents have fallen more than 20% from their June peaks, while the median S&P 500 stock trades 16% below its 52-week high—market breadth has dropped to its lowest level since the dot-com bubble burst. Meanwhile, a roughly 12% divergence gap exists between index prices and market breadth. Wilson identifies U.S. Treasury volatility as the key factor determining how this gap will close. Currently, the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield has climbed to 5.25%, the MOVE index has topped 100, while the VIX remains below 15. If bond volatility stays elevated, the S&P 500 could pull back roughly 6% to around 7,300 over the next month before rebounding by year-end. If bond volatility eases first, a catch-up rally in individual stocks could drive market breadth to align with the index. The report points out that the deterioration in market breadth began mainly after the late-August Jackson Hole symposium, fueled by investors pricing in a more hawkish Federal Reserve policy path rather than rising oil prices. Wilson notes the current weakness is driven primarily by valuation compression, not a collapse in corporate earnings. He advises sticking to large-cap quality stocks with consistently improving earnings revisions at this stage—specifically light-asset companies with high free cash flow yields, low accruals, and high per-employee sales. If the index completes its pullback, there could be opportunities to add higher-risk stocks over the next month.

10 minutes ago

Cover image via U.Today Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by our writers are their own and do not represent the views of U.Today. The financial and market information provided on U.Today is intended for informational purposes only. U.Today is not liable for any financial losses incurred while trading cryptocurrencies. Conduct your own research by contacting financial experts before making any investment decisions. We believe that all content is accurate as of the date of publication, but certain offers mentioned may no longer be available.

In a recent X post, Ethereum co-creator Vitalik Buterin revealed he was doing a bit of a self-experiment.

The goal of the experiment was to use his personal health and travel data to provide personalized diet and exercise recommendations for himself, using frontier models but in a way that avoids leaking any private information to them.

For the experiment strategy, Buterin used a local model (Qwen 3.8 Flash Next) to orchestrate and also use powerful remote models via tool calls to benefit from higher-level thinking and knowledge that the local model lacks.

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There is a three-layer approach to privacy: first, to avoid leaking personally identifiable information, or leaking his identity through his writing style, as the local model writes the queries to the frontier model. 
The second layer uses zkAPI to prevent his identity from being exposed through the payment channel, while the third uses Tor to provide network and IP-level privacy. "You need all three," Buterin wrote.

Doing a bit of a self-experiment. Goal: use my personal health and travel data to provide personalized diet and exercise recommendations for me, using frontier models but in a way that avoids leaking to them any private information. Strategy: use a local model (Qwen 3.8 Flash Next) to orchestrate, and use powerful remote models as a tool call to benefit from higher-level thinking and knowledge that the local model does not have. Three-layer approach to privacy: Avoid leaking personally identifiable information, or leaking my identity through writing style -> local model writes the queries to the frontier model, not me Avoid leaking who I am through the payment channel -> zkAPI Avoid leaking who I am through networking / IP -> Tor You need all three (and finally we have all three, at least to some extent) A skill file teaches the local model when and how to construct minimally-data-revealing requests to remote models. Use zkAPI-wrapped-with-Tor as a CLI tool. And everything works! I got the recommendations back, info from frontier models helped to improve them. Main deficiencies: * Tor is really not optimized for request-by-request de-linking, which is the only form of network-layer privacy that really makes sense in today's world (long-running identifiers are too fragile). Probably not private enough, and latency 10-100x higher than it could be, at the same time. * The skill file's request construction strategies are definitely far from optimal. * Qwen 3.8 Flash Next is still too slow for comfort. It's comfortably running at 20-30 TPS, but it would only really start to feel fast at 100+ * There is a tradeoff: the more careful you are about what data you give to a remote model, the less it can help you https://t.co/1g81Mp1sWW

— vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) October 4, 2026 A skill file teaches the local model when and how to construct minimally data-revealing requests to remote models. Buterin said he used zkAPI wrapped with Tor as a command-line tool.

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According to Buterin, the experiment worked and returned recommendations that were improved using information from the frontier models: "And everything works! I got the recommendations back, info from frontier models helped to improve them."

Buterin outlined three main deficiencies, highlighting the trade-off; the more careful you are about what data you give to a remote model, the less it can help you.

Ethereum vision staysWhile Buterin's latest discourse on X appears to focus solely on AI, his vision for Ethereum remains unchanged, with him envisioning it as a 'cryptographic world computer' in the years ahead.

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In a post towards September's close, Buterin noted that Ethereum's technology has evolved greatly over the last fifteen years, and is poised to evolve even more over the next three — to the point where it becomes fair to call what Ethereum is moving towards a qualitatively different kind of system.

According to Buterin, next year's Pectra hard fork might likely be Ethereum's last "normal" fork, with features and technology that would be recognizable to someone in 2015. Everything after that involves recursive STARKs, automated formal verification, highly optimized consensus algorithms, and making it all quantum-safe. With PeerDAS, Ethereum began its transition from being just a blockchain to being something much more powerful. Starting after Pectra, this transformation becomes Ethereum's primary story.

The outcome is much cheaper, more scalable, and more private high-security computation than anything that could be done with the previous era's technology alone: the cryptographic world computer.

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has detailed a personal experiment blending artificial intelligence with privacy-preserving technology, while reaffirming his long-term vision for Ethereum’s evolution.

AI-powered health and travel recommendationsButerin explained that he recently conducted a self-experiment using his own health and travel data to generate personalized diet and exercise suggestions. The objective was to receive meaningful recommendations from advanced AI models without compromising privacy or exposing personal details to external systems.

To implement this, Buterin combined a local AI model (Qwen 3.8 Flash Next) for orchestration with selective access to more powerful remote models. The local model handled sensitive data and delegated broader problem-solving to remote models via controlled requests, reducing the risk of confidential information being shared externally.

He utilized a skill file that guided the local model in constructing queries that revealed minimal data, while benefiting from the expertise of frontier models. According to Buterin, zkAPI wrapped with Tor was employed as a command-line tool to further safeguard his interactions.

Buterin reported that the process was effective, stating that recommendations generated with the input of advanced models showed tangible improvement over locally generated results.

Buterin shared that his system, combining zkAPI with Tor, worked as intended, offering feedback: “I got the recommendations back, info from frontier models helped to improve them.”

Despite the successful outcome, Buterin noted three main limitations. He emphasized that increased caution when communicating with remote models typically results in less helpful responses, illustrating the privacy-utility tradeoff present in current AI deployments.

Mini dictionary: zkAPI, short for Zero-Knowledge API, enables privacy-preserving interaction with AI models or external services by allowing computations or queries without revealing underlying sensitive data. The use of Tor further anonymizes internet traffic between the user and external servers.

Ethereum’s long-term vision: The cryptographic world computerWhile discussing the AI experiment, Buterin reiterated his broader ambition for Ethereum. He described Ethereum as evolving into a “cryptographic world computer,” a concept which outlines the platform’s future as a publicly verifiable network capable of private, secure, and scalable computation for global users.

In a recent post, Buterin reflected on Ethereum’s development over the past fifteen years, emphasizing that upcoming technical milestones will represent a significant shift in the platform’s core architecture.

He identified the upcoming Pectra hard fork, scheduled for next year, as the last traditional upgrade for the network. Buterin anticipates that subsequent enhancements will incorporate advanced cryptographic components, including recursive STARKs, automated formal verification, optimized consensus mechanisms, and quantum resistance. These improvements, paired with initiatives like PeerDAS, mark Ethereum’s transition to a system that is fundamentally more powerful and secure than its original blockchain design.

Buterin believes that post-Pectra, Ethereum’s transformation will accelerate, prioritizing privacy, efficiency, and high-security computation on a global scale. He characterizes this as the beginning of a new phase in Ethereum’s narrative.

The network aims to deliver computation that is much cheaper, more scalable, and more private than was possible in previous technology cycles, realizing the vision of a global cryptographic world computer.

Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF Weekly Flows: The Good, the Bad, and the Concerning

The market is still heavily betting on altcoins.

Following Q3’s 35% rally in TOTAL2, this bullish argument does not seem so far-fetched. The Altcoin Season Index also closed Q3 around 61, recovering the levels last seen in late Q2, while the BTC.D stayed well below 60.

This setup is keeping the broader altcoin rally narrative alive heading into Q4.

As the post below mentions, analysts are now expecting a bigger altcoin move to happen based on the historical technical setup. Notably, the index has already broken out sharply above 50, recording six consecutive weeks of higher highs, while Bitcoin is still struggling to break above $90k.

Should this structure hold, it could very well be the sign of the next strong altcoin rotation.

Source: X Naturally, this places emphasis on Ethereum [ETH] as the largest altcoin.

Interestingly, ETH/BTC started October by encountering resistance around 0.03, decreasing over 2.33% from its early-September peak of 0.033.

Unless ETH/BTC can break above this level, capital rotation into Ethereum may continue to be limited, which is of greater significance as Bitcoin continues to consolidate.

Historically, capital tends to rotate into Ethereum whenever Bitcoin’s risk-reward setup begins to appear less attractive. However, this scenario is not playing out just yet.

The key question now is whether Ethereum can break the ETH/BTC resistance and lead the next altcoin rotation or if the market risks a downward swing.

Ethereum faces a critical bear trap test Looking at Ethereum’s current setup, the altcoin market may be getting ahead of itself.

According to CryptoQuant, the stablecoin market cap is still down nearly from its May peak. Without fresh capital flowing into USDT, bids on ETH, SOL, XRP, and a slew of other altcoins cannot provide the liquidity needed to propel the rally higher. 

Notably, this also lines up with weakening spot demand for Ethereum, as ETH ETFs witnessed $17.25 million in outflows, and on-chain insights suggest heavy distribution. Altogether, it indicates that the altcoin’s recent bullish move could be ahead of Spot demand.

The key takeaway? These outflows occurred at the time when Bitcoin saw $31.7 million in net inflows. This suggests that the institutional capital is flowing into BTC rather than ETH, which could hurt Ethereum’s bullish scenario.

Source: X Against this backdrop, the rising FUD surrounding Ethereum begins to carry more weight.

With long positions diverging from the technical and rotation context, ETH’s consolidation near $2.7k looks like a bear trap that can spook late-leveraged longs and drive a downward spiral if Spot weakness persists.

In turn, this could trigger a cascade that would spill into the broader altcoin market, leaving the Altcoin Season Index without enough momentum for an “altcoin cycle” to emerge.

Final Summary Ethereum’s weak Spot demand and ETF outflows are challenging the broader altcoin rally. If ETH breaks lower, rising leverage could trigger a wider altcoin unwind.

There’s Major Confusion Surrounding Ethena (ENA) — Will 1.4 Billion or Just 171 Million ENA Be Unlocked Tomorrow?

TLDR: Solana logged $3.06B in daily spot DEX volume, topping Ethereum, L2s and Hyperliquid combined on October 3. Solana captured over 36% of global spot DEX volume in H1 2026, nearly twice Ethereum’s share in the period. DefiLlama showed about $78B in 30-day Solana DEX volume, versus roughly $42B recorded on Ethereum overall. Memecoin volume fell to 16% from 40%, while stablecoin swaps rose to 19% from 6% over the same period. Solana overtook Ethereum, its Layer 2 networks and Hyperliquid combined in spot decentralized exchange volume on October 3, according to Blockworks Research data. The comparison, shared by SolanaFloor on October 4, placed Solana at the top of the latest completed daily session.

Blockworks’ dedicated dashboard recorded $3.06 billion in previous-day spot DEX volume and $4.51 billion in DEX liquidity. The result stands out as the benchmark combines Ethereum mainnet with L2s and adds Hyperliquid, creating a wider measure of competing onchain trading activity.

Solana Extends Its Lead Across Spot DEX Markets The October 3 result follows a broader shift in decentralized spot trading. Research from 21Shares found that Solana handled more than 36% of global spot DEX volume during the first half of 2026.

That share was roughly double Ethereum’s, even though Solana represented about 9.5% of the smart-contract blockchain market capitalization measured in the report.

DefiLlama data also placed the network among the largest decentralized trading ecosystems. Its recent rankings showed about $78 billion in 30-day Solana DEX volume, compared with roughly $42 billion for Ethereum.

However, provider totals differ as tracking methods are not identical. Blockworks only counts trades where both assets appear in its token database. That filtering is designed to remove artificial activity involving unidentified or thinly traded tokens. As a result, Blockworks totals can sit below raw blockchain volume.

Spot Trading Mix Shifts Toward Stablecoins and Tokenized Assets The trading mix has also changed. According to 21Shares, memecoins accounted for 16% of Solana spot volume in H1 2026, down from 40% one year earlier. Stablecoin swaps moved in the opposite direction, rising from 6% to 19% over the same period.

That shift shows a larger share of activity moving beyond purely speculative tokens. Tokenized equities have also become part of the network’s trading base. Blockworks Research ranked Solana second behind Binance in median weekly spot volume among measured venues during 2026.

Even so, Solana DEX volume remained below 1% of either Nasdaq or the NYSE by dollar value, keeping the scale comparison in perspective. Trade count tells a different story. Solana recently processed about 208 million weekly spot DEX trades, above roughly 189 million NYSE transactions in a separate comparison.

Together, the October 3 lead, higher 30-day volume and changing asset mix show Solana strengthening its position in onchain spot execution. Ethereum, L2s and Hyperliquid still remain major competitors.

The comparison also highlights how dollar volume and transaction counts measure different dimensions of market activity across trading venues. On October 3, however, the daily dollar-volume ranking placed Solana ahead of the combined benchmark formed by Ethereum, L2s and Hyperliquid in this session.

Solana has surpassed Ethereum, its main Layer 2 networks, and Hyperliquid combined in daily spot decentralized exchange (DEX) trading volume, according to data provided by Blockworks Research. On October 3, Solana’s spot DEX volume reached $3.06 billion, marking a significant lead in the onchain trading landscape.

Solana, a high-performance blockchain platform known for its fast transaction speeds and low fees, has seen a considerable increase in market influence throughout 2026. Research by 21Shares, an ETP issuer and crypto research provider, indicated that Solana captured over 36% of global spot DEX volume in the first half of 2026. This figure is nearly double the share held by Ethereum, even though Solana accounted for approximately 9.5% of smart-contract blockchain market capitalization during the period.

Data tracked by DefiLlama revealed that Solana processed roughly $78 billion in 30-day DEX volume, compared with about $42 billion on Ethereum. These figures position Solana among the top networks for decentralized trading activity.

Blockworks Research has noted that its data methodology is stricter than some other providers. Its dashboard only accounts for transactions involving tokens it tracks, which is intended to filter out suspicious activity associated with obscure or unverified assets. This filtering approach can result in lower overall volume totals compared to raw onchain statistics.

NetworkDaily Spot DEX Volume (Oct 3)30-Day Total DEX VolumeSolana$3.06 billion$78 billionEthereumIncluded in combined benchmark$42 billionMini dictionary: Blockworks Research is a digital asset analytics firm that provides data dashboards, market research, and real-time insights on blockchain trading, allowing users to track volume, liquidity, and protocol-specific activity across several blockchain networks.

Trading dynamics shift: Fewer memecoins, more stablecoinsAlong with higher overall volumes, Solana’s trading activity is experiencing a notable shift in the types of assets exchanged. Findings from 21Shares suggest that memecoins accounted for 16% of Solana’s spot DEX volume in H1 2026, a reduction from 40% in the previous year. Meanwhile, the share of stablecoin swaps increased to 19%, up from 6% the year before.

This change suggests a move away from speculative tokens towards greater use of stablecoins and tokenized equities, reflecting a more diversified and mature trading environment. Blockworks Research also placed Solana second in median weekly spot volume among measured venues in 2026, behind Binance.

Despite record spot DEX volumes, Solana’s share by dollar value remains below 1% of either the Nasdaq or NYSE. However, the total trade count on Solana recently reached approximately 208 million weekly transactions, outpacing the 189 million weekly trades reported by the NYSE for the same comparison period.

On October 3, Solana recorded $3.06 billion in daily spot DEX volume, exceeding the combined total for Ethereum, its Layer 2 networks, and Hyperliquid. During the first half of 2026, Solana held more than 36% of global spot DEX volume, nearly double Ethereum’s share.

Benchmarks highlight different measures of activityThe results from recent trading activity illustrate the difference between dollar volume and transaction count as ways of measuring decentralized trading. On October 3, based on total spot DEX dollar volume, Solana led the combined benchmark set by Ethereum, Layer 2s, and Hyperliquid.

Analysts believe this shift signals that Solana is strengthening its position as a leading network for onchain spot execution, though major competitors like Ethereum, its L2s, and Hyperliquid remain prominent in the market.

Ondo’s tokenized asset growth is shifting from a single-network model toward a broader distribution of liquidity.

Although Ethereum [ETH] remains at the core of the platform with a value of $2.1 billion, this represents only 52.37% of the total and therefore implies that concentration is easing.

The most notable example is Solana [SOL]. Tokenized assets have now surpassed $456.7 million on Solana, an increase of 60.32%, or approximately $147 million, over the past 30 days. Meanwhile, BNB Chain has increased to $429.7 million, representing an increase of 19.15%.

Source: RWA.xyz This increase in tokenized assets increases the number of ways that Ondo can distribute its tokenized product offerings to other users. Also, there are currently 521,028 token holders transferring $2.38 billion per month.

Source: RWA.xyz This indicates that these assets are being transferred into circulation as opposed to simply being created.

As adoption grows, the current $3.89 billion asset base of Ondo will be distributed among many networks and no longer rely solely on Ethereum.

Solana leads tokenized-equity lending Tokenized equities are moving beyond simple ownership as users begin putting them to work in on-chain credit markets. Solana is at the forefront of this evolution, as over $20.7 million worth of tokenized stock is being utilized as collateral via Kamino.

As such, it appears many of these users are seeking to utilize liquidity locked up by their equity holdings but avoid liquidating their equity exposure. On the other hand, Ethereum has $5.8 million in tokenized stocks serving as lending collateral through Euler and Morpho.

Meanwhile, Robin Hood Chain has produced just under $2 million in additional supply also via Morpho.

Source: X The large disparity illustrates that lending is still in its infancy and unevenly distributed among various networks. However, the fact that this functionality exists represents a significant expansion of tokenization.

Additionally, if adoption of lending grows, then tokenized equities will likely be given greater utility, which will drive even greater demand for on-chain collateral.

Tokenized stocks test credit demand Tokenized equities now face a test of whether lending protocols can manage their risks without limiting adoption. On Aave [AAVE] V4’s Equities Hub, collateral factors range from 65% to 79%, forcing borrowers to maintain buffers before liquidation.

Source: Aave Governance However, these constraints create a measurable path for growth. Rising collateral deposits and USD Coin [USDC] borrowing would show stronger credit demand.

Meanwhile, limited liquidations would indicate that risk controls remain effective as activity expands across tokenized stocks.

Final Summary Ondo has expanded its $3.89 billion tokenized asset base across multiple networks. Tokenized equities are gaining credit utility as Solana leads on-chain collateral activity.

Ethereum breaks through $2,700

Ethereum price has entered October near $2,695 after gaining 32.6% in August and another 8.8% in September, leaving $2,775–$2,800 as the main barrier standing between ETH and a possible move toward $3,000.

Summary

Ethereum trades near $2,695, with $2,775–$2,800 remaining the main resistance zone entering October this month. U.S. spot Ether ETFs recorded $118 million in net outflows during the latest trading week. Glamsterdam is scheduled to activate on Sepolia October 6, while mainnet timing remains undecided still. Ethereum gained 32.6% in August and 8.8% in September before consolidating near $2,700 again now. A clean break above $2,800 could reopen $3,000, while $2,400–$2,500 remains key downside support area. CoinGecko data showed ETH trading around $2,693–$2,695 on Oct. 4, up roughly 0.7% over 24 hours but nearly flat over seven days. The token traded between approximately $2,678 and $2,697 during the latest 24-hour period, with a market capitalization near $328 billion.

Ethereum has spent the opening days of October holding close to $2,700 after reaching an intraday high around $2,775 on Oct. 2. The price failed to hold the advance, falling back below $2,700 before stabilizing over the weekend.

Ethereum price needs to clear $2,800 for a $3,000 move ETH has already completed much of the recovery setup that developed through August and September. Historical price data show Ethereum ended August near $2,467 after gaining roughly 32.6% during the month. September produced another gain of approximately 8.8%, with ETH finishing around $2,685.

Price action accelerated in the second half of September. ETH moved from roughly $2,398 on Sept. 15 to $2,775 by Sept. 21 before settling back into the $2,650–$2,700 region. The move pushed Ethereum above its earlier $2,400–$2,550 consolidation range but stopped short of establishing support above $2,800.

Technical analysis identified a similar structure after ETH broke above resistance near $2,661.52.Its chart placed interim resistance between roughly $2,775 and $2,825, with $3,050 as a possible continuation target if the breakout holds. A loss of approximately $2,560–$2,565 would weaken that setup.

For October, the immediate bullish case therefore rests on a relatively narrow price area. ETH would first need to close convincingly above roughly $2,775–$2,800. Holding that area as support would put $2,900 and $3,000 back into view, while the existing rising channel points toward approximately $2,950–$3,100 later in the month if momentum continues.

The monthly TradingView chart supplied for this analysis shows RSI at 51.53, above its moving average of 48.46. A reading above 50 indicates improving momentum, but it remains far from the 70 level normally associated with an overbought market.

Ethereum (ETH) price chart, source: TradingView MACD remains weaker. The monthly MACD line sits near -98.3 compared with a signal line around -66.4, leaving the histogram near -31.9. The lines have moved closer together, but a bullish crossover has not occurred.

ETF buying has cooled after BlackRock’s September purchases Institutional demand provided support during September, though the latest ETF figures show that buying has not remained one-directional.

Arkham Intelligence said on Sept. 17 that BlackRock’s Ethereum funds had acquired approximately $1.57 billion worth of ETH during the preceding 20 days. ETHA accounted for around $1.27 billion, while ETHB represented another $296.5 million. The figures described assets purchased by ETF products for investors, not ETH bought for BlackRock’s corporate balance sheet.

The more recent data are less bullish. Farside Investors recorded $59.6 million in combined U.S. spot Ether ETF outflows on Sept. 30, followed by $55.4 million on Oct. 1 and another $17.3 million on Oct. 2. Including earlier sessions, the Sept. 28–Oct. 2 week produced roughly $118 million in net outflows.

As crypto.news reported, Ethereum ETF outflows contrasted with the previous week, when the products attracted approximately $689.8 million.

The figures make the October ETF picture more mixed than the mid-September BlackRock buying data alone suggest. BlackRock’s earlier accumulation established strong demand during part of September, while the latest industry-wide numbers show capital leaving the U.S. Ether ETF complex as October began.

Exchange-flow data supplied by CryptoQuant analyst R3N show a similarly balanced picture on-chain. Ethereum exchange inflows and outflows tracked each other closely throughout most of September, with large two-way spikes occurring on several of the same dates.

The most recent reading showed approximately 129,700 ETH leaving exchanges compared with 116,700 ETH entering them. R3N described it as the first clear divergence after weeks of closely matched flows, while cautioning that one reading does not confirm a lasting accumulation trend.

Glamsterdam gives Ethereum an Oct. 6 network event Ethereum’s next major network upgrade reaches an important test on Oct. 6.

The Ethereum Foundation has scheduled Glamsterdam to activate on the Sepolia testnet at 13:53:36 UTC on Oct. 6. Node operators on Sepolia must update both execution and consensus clients before the fork. Hoodi and Ethereum mainnet activation dates have not yet been finalized.

Glamsterdam combines the Amsterdam execution-layer upgrade with the Gloas consensus-layer changes. Its main features include enshrined proposer-builder separation and block-level access lists, along with changes to gas pricing designed to improve how Ethereum handles execution and state growth.

As crypto.news reported in its Glamsterdam coverage, the Sepolia activation is a public testing milestone and should not be described as an Ethereum mainnet launch.

The official Ethereum roadmap currently lists Glamsterdam for mainnet in Q4 2026 but says the date has not been confirmed. Results from Sepolia and later testing will therefore determine the next stages of deployment.

Another U.S. market development arrived on Oct. 2. The Securities and Exchange Commission approved a Cboe BZX rule change permitting the listing of a 3x Ether ETF alongside leveraged products linked to Bitcoin, gold, silver, crude oil and natural gas.

The product seeks three times the daily performance of an Ether futures benchmark. SEC approval of the exchange rule does not mean the leveraged product provides a forecast for ETH or guarantees additional spot demand.

Ethereum price prediction for October points to three scenarios The main October setup remains centered on $2,800 resistance and support around the lower boundary of Ethereum’s rising channel.

October setupPrice areaWhat would need to happenChannel holds$2,650–$3,050ETH defends its rising structure and clears $2,775–$2,800Consolidation$2,500–$2,800Buyers defend the recovery, but repeated attempts above $2,800 failChannel breaks$2,400–$2,500ETH loses channel support and retests its former breakout zone The first scenario keeps $3,000 reachable without requiring ETH to enter a completely new price structure. A confirmed move above $2,800 would place Ethereum beyond the rejection area seen in late September and early October. 

Crypto.news’ Ethereum price model currently gives October a base scenario around $3,034, with a bearish estimate near $2,579 and a bullish estimate around $3,641. Model-generated forecasts are not guaranteed price targets and can change as new market data arrive.

A weaker October would begin to take shape if Ethereum loses the mid-$2,600 region and fails to reclaim it. The next major area from the supplied chart lies around $2,400–$2,500, where resistance repeatedly formed earlier in 2026 before ETH broke higher.

Below that region, the next technical warning area sits near $2,350–$2,360. Its analysis said a break below that range could invalidate the recent bullish continuation pattern.

Analyst Ted Pillows is watching the opposite boundary. He said ETH needs to reclaim $2,800 on the weekly close to strengthen bullish momentum, making the level the immediate test before traders begin treating $3,000 as a more established target.

Ali Martinez is looking much further out. According to the analyst, Ethereum has traded within a rising monthly channel extending more than five years, with its upper boundary near $5,000. He said a break above that level could produce a projected move toward $8,800. The setup is a conditional long-term chart projection, not an October forecast.

Citi’s latest institutional forecast is more restrained. The bank raised its 12-month Ether target to $3,028 from $2,240 on Oct. 1, citing increased crypto activity, macroeconomic conditions and renewed ETF demand. The forecast covers a 12-month horizon and should not be interpreted as an October target.

Can Ethereum price reach $3,000 in October? Ethereum can reach $3,000 within its existing technical structure if ETH breaks and holds above roughly $2,775–$2,800. Technical analysis places a continuation target near $3,050 after the recent breakout, while failure at $2,800 would keep ETH inside its current consolidation range.

What is the most important Ethereum resistance? The immediate resistance sits around $2,775–$2,800. ETH reached roughly $2,775 on Oct. 2 but failed to sustain the move, leaving that area as the main short-term ceiling.

What Ethereum price level would weaken the bullish case? A move below roughly $2,560 would weaken the short-term recovery, while the $2,400–$2,500 region remains the larger support area from the current ascending-channel structure. Another technical warning zone sits around $2,350–$2,360.

When is Ethereum’s Glamsterdam upgrade? Glamsterdam is scheduled to activate on the Sepolia testnet on Oct. 6 at 13:53:36 UTC. Ethereum developers have not yet announced final Hoodi or mainnet activation dates.

Are Ethereum ETFs still seeing strong inflows? Not during the latest week. U.S. spot Ether ETFs recorded approximately $118 million in net outflows from Sept. 28 through Oct. 2 after attracting $689.8 million in the preceding week.

Disclosure: This article does not represent investment advice. The content and materials featured on this page are for educational purposes only.