It was only a matter of time before Ethereum finally woke up. Today, the world’s second-largest digital asset has made a significant move, but what is really driving the momentum for ETH?
Over the past few hours, Ethereum prices have cranked to levels not seen for five months. It has yet to revisit the 2020 high of $285 back in February but is well on the way if the current momentum continues.
Following weeks of range-bound trading oscillating between $220 and $250, Ethereum has finally broken through resistance in a move up to $270 today.
![ETH price](http://beincrypto.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/ethprice2307.jpg)
Ethereum 2.0 Final Public Testnet Officially Announced
The primary driver of the current momentum appears to be an announcement confirming the ‘official’ final ETH 2.0 testnet launch. On Wednesday, Ethereum developers released the specifications for the official public testnet, renewing hopes for a mainnet launch before the end of the year. August 4 will be the day that the ETH 2.0 public testnet, named ‘Medalla,’ will go live. Medalla means ‘medal’ and is a nod to the ‘Olympic’ testnet that was used to prepare the ETH 1.0 launch. Ethhub co-founder, Anthony Sassano [@sassal0x], was quick to spread the word;The “official” eth2 phase 0 public testnet (codenamed ‘Medalla’) will go live on August 4th. If all goes well, this will be the final testnet before mainnet launch. It’s finally happening!!Medalla will be the fifth Beacon Chain testnet for Phase 0 of the long-awaited Serenity upgrade. The new Ethereum blockchain initially went live on the Sapphire testnet in April when the genesis block was mined, verified, and tested using smaller 3.2 ETH deposits.
![Ethereum](http://beincrypto.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/bic_ethereum_s_recent_rise.jpg)
The Schlesi testnet was one of many steps in that direction. The Witti testnet was another. The Altona testnet is yet another. The Medalla testnet aims to be the final one prior to mainnet launch,
ETH Massively Undervalued, Whales Loading Up
Compared to Bitcoin, Ethereum is still way undervalued, even after today’s blip. Bitcoin has recovered almost 50% since its all-time high but Ethereum is still wallowing more than 80% below its own high. There is still a lot of room to go for ETH and on-chain metrics and adoption is light years ahead of what it was three years ago. This includes the fact that network fees and gas usage is at an all-time high. On-chain analytics provider, Santiment [@santimentfeed], has been looking into exchange inflows noting that whales have been moving a lot of ETH recently:Nearly 700K $ETH were moved by top 100 whales in the past 3 days. Over this time, the combined balance of the top 100 non-exchange ETH addresses shrank by almost 700K ETH, or about ~$182.7M. This was likely pre-pump positioning & a forewarning of the pump.There are usually signals before a big pump, and the lack of volatility has shown that accumulation has been occurring during the last few months of consolidation.
![Ethereum ETH](http://beincrypto.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/bic_ethereim_space.jpg)
Crypto Custody for U.S. Banks
The recent news that federally chartered U.S. banks and thrifts may provide custody services for crypto assets has also given markets a big boost. The Office of the Comptroller of Currency made the announcement yesterday, much to the delight of the crypto community. Ripple CEO, Brad Garlinghouse [@bgarlinghouse], was quick to express his thoughts on the overwhelmingly positive development for the industry.BOOM! Today’s ruling is a huge step forward. The @USOCC is absolutely leading the way to foster innovation, protect consumers and provide a level playing field for all. The future has never been fiat versus crypto – these can and should coexist in harmony!Crypto markets reacted with a $9 billion spike in total market capitalization to $285 billion—its highest level since June 2. Bitcoin got a boost, climbing over $9,500 again, and most altcoins are in the green today. If Ethereum’s Medalla testnet is a success, ETH 2.0 could be rolled out on the mainnet within the next six months, and Ethereum prices could look very different by the end of the year.
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Martin Young
Martin Young is a seasoned cryptocurrency journalist and editor with over 7 years of experience covering the latest news and trends in the digital asset space. He is passionate about making complex blockchain, fintech, and macroeconomics concepts understandable for mainstream audiences.
Martin has been featured in top finance, technology, and crypto publications including BeInCrypto, CoinTelegraph, NewsBTC, FX Empire, and Asia Times. His articles provide an in-depth analysis of...
Martin Young is a seasoned cryptocurrency journalist and editor with over 7 years of experience covering the latest news and trends in the digital asset space. He is passionate about making complex blockchain, fintech, and macroeconomics concepts understandable for mainstream audiences.
Martin has been featured in top finance, technology, and crypto publications including BeInCrypto, CoinTelegraph, NewsBTC, FX Empire, and Asia Times. His articles provide an in-depth analysis of...
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