Ether’s price saw a temporary surge, climbing 7% to reach a two-week high of $2,850. This increase coincided with a spike in Ethereum network transaction fees, which soared from $0.70 to a striking $70 per transaction. However, the optimism was short-lived as fees soon normalized, and ETH lost a quick $100, curbing 24-hour gains to below 2%.
The brief hike in Ethereum’s price and activity was largely attributed to the launch of “Wall Street Pepe,” a new memecoin project accounting for over 25% of Ethereum’s transaction fees in a three-hour window due to its linked launchpad, “Pepu Pump Pad,” housed on an Ethereum layer-2 chain. Despite the initial enthusiasm, market sentiment remained skeptical, particularly in Ether futures markets, where ETH futures premiums held steady at around 6%.
While Ether’s rally seemed largely speculative with stabilization in derivatives and no substantial demand for leveraged positions, the broader outlook for Ethereum remains cautiously optimistic. Upcoming network upgrades, like Ethereum’s ‘Pectra,’ promise improved scalability and user experiences through enhanced smart contract permissions and ‘gasless’ transactions, potentially supporting future price gains. Yet, challenges remain, including resolving fee structure debates to ensure sustainable ecosystem growth, crucial for any significant upward movement beyond $3,000.
