Ethereum derivatives positioning has shifted decisively bullish as long exposure overtakes short exposure across major exchanges, reflecting renewed trader confidence. This transition follows a sharp upward price move that triggered widespread short liquidations, forcing short covering and accelerating buying pressure. According to market data, the shift appears deliberate and measured, suggesting traders are positioning for continuation rather than reacting to short squeezes.
Ether is currently trading around $3,030, holding above the key psychological support level of $3,000 with a nearly 4% daily increase. Price action shows higher intraday lows and limited retracement, with pullbacks to the $2,900-$2,920 range being quickly bought. Trading volume expanded to about $27 billion in the session, indicating active participation without excessive leverage conditions.
The market structure reflects controlled momentum, with Ethereum's market capitalization near $366 billion showing steady capital retention. Major downside support is now between $2,950 and $2,980, with holding this range crucial for maintaining the short-term bullish structure.
However, the market faces significant headwinds. Ethereum price experienced a sharp 10% decline this week, dropping to a low of $2,680 after failing to break above $3,050 resistance. The cryptocurrency is currently struggling to hold the $2,700 support level, trading below $2,800 and the 100-hour Simple Moving Average.
The past 24 hours saw $416.8 million in liquidations across Ethereum positions, with long liquidations accounting for $391 million of this total according to Coinglass data. A steep bearish trend line has formed with resistance at $2,820 on the hourly chart.
In a significant development for Ethereum's ecosystem, developer Griff Green announced the launch of The DAO Security Fund, which will use over $200 million in unclaimed funds from the 2016 DAO hack to support Ethereum security initiatives. The fund will stake 70,500 ETH from an Extrabalance contract and 4,600 ETH from DAO and ETH tokens, with curators including Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, MetaMask's Taylor Monahan, and Dappnode's Pol Lanski.
The fund will support security improvements including wallet user experience, incident response, Layer 2 and bridge security, and core protocol security, guided by the Ethereum Foundation's "Trillion Dollar Security" initiative. Distribution will occur through quadratic funding, retroactive funding, and rank-choice voting mechanisms.
Technical analysis shows immediate resistance at $2,765, followed by the key $2,820 level where the bearish trend line is positioned. A clear move above $2,860 could push the price toward $2,900 and potentially $3,000. However, if bulls fail to defend $2,700, the next support level is at $2,680, with further downside targets at $2,625, $2,550, and $2,500.
