Cryptocurrency markets are showing healthy signs of recovery right now. Most of the major cryptocurrencies are in the green once again. There are three big exceptions, though, as neither Ethereum, Dash, nor XRP is performing all too well right now. The case of Ethereum is especially surprising. More specifically, the Ethereum price is seeming to struggle around the US$225 mark.
ETHEREUM HITS A BIT OF A SLUMP DESPITE BITCOIN GAINS
A few months ago, people were actively debating a concept known as the flippening. If such a trend were to ever materialize, the Ethereum market cap would have overtaken Bitcoin’s. While it is true Ethereum saw significant growth during the first half of 2017, a lot of those gains have been wiped out in recent weeks. Even now that the markets are all somewhat recovering, Ethereum is seeming to struggle to break the US$225 mark.
To put this in perspective, Ethereum’s market cap will not overtake Bitcoin’s any time soon. Back when Ether hit US$400, many people assumed that the flippening would only be a matter of time. At one point, there was “only” US$8B separating both market caps, which was a clear sign of both bullish momentum and foolish investments at the same time. After all, there are a few good reasons why Ethereum may eventually fail, even though die-hard community members will gladly tell you otherwise.
More to the point, Ethereum currently has a market cap of US$21B. That is a more-than-respectable number, considering all of the negative pressure the market has had to endure in recent weeks. Then again, it is also a long way from the US$37B market cap Ethereum had around six weeks ago. While it is true a lot of cryptocurrencies lost value in recent weeks, most of them have recovered quite well. Ethereum, on the other hand, is a bit behind the curve.
Granted, Ethereum’s price jumped from around US$10 in early 2017 all the way to US$400 a few weeks ago, and could not carry on without a price correction. Anyone who thinks otherwise is misguided, to say the least. Ethereum has seen its inevitable correction in recent weeks, pushing the price down to as low as US$151 not too long ago. Such a steep correction is a tough pill to swallow for a lot of people, which is understandable. Then again, US$151 was still overpriced in some people’s minds.
Over the past week or so, we have seen a second lease on life for Ethereum and its Ether token. The price has started to rebound and is now hovering around the US$225 mark. It is a nice gain compared to US$151 just over a week ago, but it is nowhere close to US$400 either. Whether or not Ether will reach US$400 again remains to be seen. One thing seems obvious right now, though: the currency will not be able to ride the coattails of Bitcoin’s price gains by any means. Ether lost nearly 4% in value against Bitcoin over the past 24 hours alone, indicating that a flippening is very far away right now.
None of this means that Ethereum will fail or that we don’t want the price to grow in the future, though. Now is the time for people to adjust their expectations of what this currency should be worth. With a market cap of US$21B, Ethereum has come a lot further in just a few years than what many people originally expected. There is no reason to get overzealous right now and expect spectacular things to simply happen overnight. Ethereum is following its own path, which will be filled with ups and downs along the way. Bitcoin price gains will not automatically result in Ethereum price gains; that is the harsh reality speculators have to face right now.
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