Ether Surpasses $3,000 Mark for the First Time in Nearly Two Years

Ethereum's price surge fueled by anticipation of ETF approval and network upgrade.

Ether's price soared above the $3,000 threshold on February 20, marking its highest value since April 2022.

The surge saw Ether (ETH) climbing from $2,881 on February 19, experiencing a remarkable 4% increase within 24 hours and a staggering 74% surge over the past year, reaching a peak of $3,000.97 on Binance at 13:45 UTC, as per CoinMarketCap data.

This surge marks the first time Ether has surpassed $3,000 in nearly 22 months, since its peak of $2,966 in May 2022, before entering a prolonged bearish phase that saw its value plummet to $883 by June 2022.

Ether's recent bullish performance is attributed to the anticipation surrounding the potential approval of a spot Ether exchange-traded fund (ETF) by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the impending implementation of Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) 4844 through the Dencun upgrade.

The Dencun upgrade, slated for March 13, is expected to introduce several EIPs, notably EIP-4844, which introduces proto-danksharding, streamlining the transaction process by offloading some data from the blockchain, thereby enhancing transaction speeds and reducing costs.

Furthermore, data from CoinGlass indicates a significant uptick in open interest (OI) in the Ether futures market, soaring to a record $10.19 billion, underscoring the heightened volatility in Ether's price.

Market observers anticipate the bullish momentum to persist, particularly with any developments surrounding the potential approval of a spot Ether ETF and broader movements in the cryptocurrency market.