Ether Whales Accumulate Amid Price Pullback: 2017-Like Buying Spree Continues

On Tuesday, Ether (ETH) traded at $2,555.77, marking a 3.7% decline over the past 24 hours after a sharp rejection near the $2,673 level triggered a wave of selling. The downturn follows several sessions of declining momentum and increasing volatility, culminating in a major sell-off late Monday that broke through initial support and left prices trending downward for most of the day.

Despite this weakness in price action, on-chain data suggests that larger market participants continue to treat the pullback as an opportunity to accumulate. According to Glassnode, daily net whale accumulation has exceeded 800,000 ETH for nearly a week, with total holdings in 1,000 to 10,000 ETH wallets rising above 14.3 million. The largest single-day inflow occurred on June 12, when whale wallets added more than 871,000 ETH — the biggest net inflow of 2025 so far.

This accumulation trend mirrors behavior last seen in 2017, underscoring the scale and intensity of recent large-holder buying. The whale buying spree has coincided with Ethereum’s retreat from $2,700 levels and may reflect strategic positioning ahead of further developments in institutional flows or ETF-related catalysts.

While technicals remain under pressure in the short term, the magnitude of this buying activity signals growing conviction among large entities. With prices hovering just above key support, traders and analysts are watching closely to see whether this whale-driven accumulation translates into a near-term reversal or simply cushions further downside.

During the June 16 trading session, ETH fell 5.7% from $2,679.99 to $2,527.37 with volume exceeding 560,000 ETH. A sharp drop occurred during the 22:00 hour, confirming resistance at $2,650 and accelerating downside momentum. The subsequent recovery stalled near $2,540, forming a narrow consolidation pattern with reduced volatility.

During the final hour of the analysis window, ETH climbed from $2,550.57 to a peak of $2,564.28 before stabilizing near $2,553.40. A spike in volume at 13:30 saw over 12,200 ETH traded, driving a brief 1.6% rally to $2,561.59. A pullback followed, finding support at $2,549.56 during the 13:44 candle; price action formed an ascending channel with buyers stepping in. The $2,553–$2,555 zone emerged as a key intraperiod consolidation level during the recovery phase.