Ethereum ETH/USD surged 4% in the past 24 hours amid NFT trading volumes and an increase in validators.
What Happened: Ethereum's one-year gain stands at 75%, with the asset reaching its highest level since June 2022.
The Block data shows an increase in the volume of NFTs traded on Ethereum from Feb. 4 to Feb. 11 ($147.3 million) compared to $71.7 million registered from Jan. 28 to Feb. 4. The current levels are the highest since late February 2023.
The growth is driven by the third-ranked NFT collection, Pudgy Penguins, which is competing with the market cap of its rival, the Bored Ape Yacht Club, owned by Yuga Labs. An update indicated that Pudgy Penguins is developing Pudgy World, an interactive gaming experience that will reportedly come to the Apple Vision Pro.
According to a weekly report by CoinShares Digital Asset Fund Flows, Ethereum saw an inflow of $16.5 million in the first week of February.
Ethereum is also witnessing a surge in the number of validators looking to stake their ether. According to ValidatorQueue data, the validator entry queue spiked to 7,045—the highest since Oct. 6, 2023.
For those unfamiliar, validators are entities that stake a minimum of 32 ether in the network to participate in running Ethereum's proof-of-stake consensus blockchain. In exchange for staking ether, they receive a steady rate of return similar to interest income from fixed-income instruments like bonds.
Meanwhile, the network’s smart contract deposits, measured by the total value locked (TVL), stand at $40.7 billion—the highest since June 2022 levels, based on DefiLlama data.
Why It Matters: Franklin Templeton is the latest fund to apply for a spot Ethereum ETF. If approved, it would be listed as “Franklin Ethereum ETF” on the Chicago Board Options Exchange.
Altcoin trader, Gordon tweeted that with ETFs accumulating Bitcoin, it could go to $100,000 and Ethereum "to $8k+," which will “trigger an alt season.”
Crypto and Bitcoin enthusiast, Michaël van de Poppe shared his excitement on X
What's Next: Ethereum, supported by strong network metrics and asset inflows, looks poised for a bull run.
Read Next: Ark 21Shares Updates Ethereum ETF Proposal: Staking, Cash Creation On Table
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