Ethereum's Surge Could Kick Off The 2025 'Altcoin Bull Market', Experts Say

by Khyathi Dalal Benzinga Staff Writer

Zinger Key Points

Matt Hougan reports a surge in crypto interest among financial advisors, with portfolio allocations rising to 5%.
Matthew Sigel predicts 2025 will mark the beginning of an altcoin bull market, with Ethereum leading the charge after a 44% weekly rally.
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Ethereum's ETH/USD powerful rally is reviving optimism across the altcoin space, with top analysts projecting a full-scale altcoin bull market in 2025.

What Happened: During an episode of the Wolf of All Streets podcast with Scott Melker published on May 14, Matthew Sigel, Head of Digital Assets Research at VanEck, said Ethereum's 44% weekly surge has flipped sentiment across the sector.

We're seeing the beginning of an "altcoin bull market," Sigel said, pointing to Dogecoin DOGE/USD and Solana SOL/USD already outperforming Bitcoin BTC/USD.

He attributes the ETH rally to multiple catalysts, including the Dencun upgrade, leadership shifts within the Ethereum Foundation, and an aggressive short squeeze, particularly from institutions that had been short ETH against long BTC and SOL positions.

Sigel added that while short-term headwinds like dollar strength may slow momentum, the structural setup remains bullish. Bernstein Research echoed this view, citing Layer 2 adoption, growing stablecoin and tokenization activity and renewed institutional flows.

Also Read: Ethereum Rallies 42% In 7 Days: What Is Driving The Surge?

Why It Matters: Sigel's remarks coincided with the launch of VanEck's Onchain Economy ETF (NØDE), a hybrid fund combining crypto ETF exposure (25%) with high- and low-volatility blockchain equities.

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VanEck also rolled out a tokenized U.S. Treasury fund, accessible via Ethereum, Solana, Avalanche AVAX/USD, and BNB Chain, a move targeting institutional clients seeking 24/7 access and USDC-based settlement.

Meanwhile, Matt Hougan, Chief Investment Officer at BitwiseInvest, highlighted the growing embrace of crypto among financial advisors after attending a major industry conference.

He shared three key insights: crypto ETP access is expected across most advisory firms by year-end, advisor demand is intensifying, with billions in expected inflows and portfolio allocations rising from 1% to 5%.

"I fielded more Ethereum questions in the past few days than in the last six months," Hougan noted, emphasizing that interest is surging for both Bitcoin and Ethereum.

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