Asia! As the crypto markets open for another trading day, investors are watching Ethereum’s latest surge with cautious optimism, while OKB steals the spotlight with a massive rally driven by tokenomics.
Ethereum maintains strength—but early cracks are forming.
ETH has had a spectacular run lately, climbing nearly 16% over the past week and more than 45% over the last month. It was trading above $4,600 as of early Friday, but has since pulled back about 3.3% in the past 24 hours. For now, long-term bulls may still feel confident, especially with the ETH/BTC ratio breaking above its 365-day moving average a historically reliable indicator of ETH out performance. Massive institutional interest continues to flow into Ethereum-based ETFs, with inflows topping $1 billion in a single day earlier this week. These structural drivers remain intact and are largely behind the momentum seen over the past month.
But exchange inflows and valuation metrics are flashing caution.
Data from France-based FlowDesk highlights that despite strong ETF buying activity, traders are increasingly engaging in call overwriting at the $7,000–$8,000 strike prices for December. This kind of strategy selling calls above the current price suggests that some investors believe ETH’s upside may now be limited.
Macro factors remain supportive—but with risks ahead.
QCP Capital, in its Asia Color daily note, framed Ethereum’s rally within a favorable macro environment: lower U.S. inflation (CPI), expectations for a Fed rate cut in September, and easing geopolitical tension. However, upcoming data particularly Jackson Hole remarks, CPI, and Nonfarm Payrolls could quickly shift investor sentiment. Market maker Enflux added that this week’s hotter-than-expected U.S. Producer Price Index (PPI) figures reminded traders that inflation risks aren’t gone. They noted that ETH’s recent outperformance may now face consolidation if risk appetite fades.
In contrast, OKB is experiencing a supply-driven explosion.
While Ethereum cools, OKB the utility token of the OKX exchange has surged by more than 108% this week. The driver? A dramatic one-time token burn of over 65 million OKB, cutting total supply down to just 21 million tokens. This puts it on par with Bitcoin’s fixed supply and has instantly changed the token’s supply dynamics. Initially launched as an ERC-20 token on Ethereum, OKB now runs on OKX’s native blockchain and is used across its ecosystem for discounts, loyalty rewards, and payment integration with third-party services. This wide utility, combined with reduced supply, has strengthened investor enthusiasm.
Traders should tread carefully.
While the rally is impressive, analysts warn that such sharp moves especially those based on tokenomics rather than adoption or earnings can be volatile. OKB now enters speculative territory, and any long positions should be managed with caution.
Add comment