Ethereum (ETH) held on centralized exchanges has dropped to 14.8 million ETH, the lowest level since July 2016, according to data from Glassnode. This represents a 50% reduction over the past two years, with the decline accelerating in mid-July, leading to a 20% decrease in exchange balances since then.
In the past month alone, over 2.7 million ETH worth approximately $11.3 billion has been withdrawn from exchanges, as indicated by CryptoQuant's net flow data reaching its highest level since late 2022. These outflows suggest a shift toward long-term holding strategies, such as cold storage, staking, or DeFi protocols for higher yields.
Institutional accumulation has been a key driver, with corporate treasuries like BitMine—chaired by Tom Lee—and around 68 entities purchasing 5.26 million ETH worth $21.7 billion since April, accounting for 4.3% of the total supply. Additionally, U.S. spot Ether ETFs now hold 6.75 million ETH worth nearly $28 billion, or 5.6% of supply. Combined, institutional entities control about 10% of all ETH, with most staking their holdings to remove tokens from immediate selling pressure.
However, this bullish trend is counteracted by selling from long-term holders, as evidenced by Ethereum's Liveliness metric trending upward. This opposing pressure has kept ETH price action limited, with the coin trading around $4,176, stuck in a range between $4,000 and $4,500 for weeks. Despite a recent 11% drop over the past week, analysts like Rachael Lucas of BTC Markets describe this as Ethereum's "Wall Street glow-up," with Tom Lee predicting prices of $10,000 to $15,000 by year-end.