Key Insights:
- A recent Ethereum price prediction pointed to a possible rally toward $7,00 if an inverse head and shoulder pattern is successful.
- Exchange balances fell to record lows, while institutions were estimated to control about 11% of the total supply.
- Ethereum reached the 2021 high in August when it briefly touched $4,945 as its market value neared $600 billion. Then, the exchange balances fell to record lows, pointing to a tightening supply.
A recent Ethereum price prediction pointed to a possible rally toward $7,000, a strong uptick that’s dependent on the success of a massive inverse head-and-shoulders pattern.
The setup suggests growing strength beneath the surface, even if price action remains cautious in the short term.
At the same time, on-chain data painted a supportive picture. Exchange balances fell to record lows, while institutions were estimated to control about 11% of the total supply.
This shift signals tighter liquid supply and stronger hands accumulating over time. However, other parts of the ecosystem continue to tell a different story.
NFT sales have collapsed by roughly 87%, and retail participation remains largely absent. Payment activity tied to consumer use has also stayed muted.
Taken together, the data suggested a clear transition for Ethereum (ETH) which appears to be maturing into core digital infrastructure.
Yet, it no longer carries the cultural momentum that once drew retail traders, NFT creators, and everyday users into the network.
Setup Eyes Ethereum Price Prediction of $7,000
The latest expert Ethereum price prediction by Bitcoin Consensus, a popular crypto pundit on X notes Ethereum is beginning to trace out a familiar long-term structure on the chart.
What stands out is a broad inverse head-and-shoulders pattern that has taken years to develop.
This type of formation is usually seen after extended bear phases, when selling pressure starts to fade and stronger hands step in.
The left shoulder formed after the steep collapse from the 2021 highs. From there, price slipped further to carve out the head, a move that marked the point where downside momentum finally ran out of steam.
Since then, Ethereum price action has worked its way higher and is now shaping what looks like a right shoulder at noticeably higher levels.
That change alone signals a market that is stabilizing, not one chasing quick rebounds.
The real test sits at the neckline where the yellow dotted line marks a resistance zone that has repeatedly stopped rallies in the past.
Every rejection from this area has reinforced its importance where a decisive move above it has issued a shift in the technical picture to suggest buyers are no longer on the defensive.
If that break holds, the upside math becomes hard to ignore. Using the size of the pattern, longer-term projections point Ethereum price toward the $7,000 area.
That path would almost certainly be uneven, with pauses and pullbacks along the way, rather than a straight vertical run.
More broadly, the structure reflects a change in behavior. Volatility has cooled, swings are less emotional, and higher lows are becoming more consistent.
That kind of price action tends to emerge when long-term positioning replaces short-term speculation. The pattern is not confirmed yet.
But a clean breakout above the neckline would mark a clear shift in trend and set the stage for a much stronger phase in the next cycle of Ethereum price.
ETH Balance on Exchanges Is Drying Up: Will This Push The Price By 40%?
Ethereum price reached the 2021 high in August when it briefly touched $4,945 as its market value neared $600 billion. Then, the exchange balances fell to record lows, pointing to a tightening supply.
Today, institutional ownership has risen in parallel with corporate treasuries and spot ETFs now claiming nearly 11% of circulating ETH. By conventional standards, this should have been a headline moment.
Instead, the rally has been quiet with NFT sales absent, retail interest thin, and social buzz muted. Prices are rising, but without the usual noise.
The reason is clear. Institutions are driving this move, treating Ethereum as yield-bearing infrastructure rather than a speculative trade.
That shift has raised a crucial question. When hype fades and culture steps back, how does price discovery work when buyers care more about scale and stability than excitement? Could this narrative be the force to catapult Ethereum price action to $7,000 and beyond?
The Ethereum balance on centralized exchanges has dropped to 10.5% as of December 21. It marks the lowest levels since launch and down 43% since July, according to CoinGlass.
Over 35.6 million ETH is now locked in staking. This is not hoarding—it reflects the network’s operational backbone.
Nansen data shows the largest holders are staking contracts, institutional custodians, and ETF wrappers. Whale wallets make up only a small share.
ETH is leaving exchanges, but not for day trading. It’s moving into layer-2 bridges, restaking protocols, and treasury vaults.
Moreover, corporate and ETF holdings now control just over 10% of Ethereum supply. Corporates hold 5.6%, ETFs 5.1%, according to Strategic ETH Reserve data.
Institutional demand is clear. Year-to-date, ETH ETPs have drawn $12.7 billion, with US spot ETFs making up almost all of it.
The infrastructure is in place, and the big allocators are here. Both on-chain insights and the technical setup suggest a bullish Ethereum price prediction of $7,000.
Source: https://www.thecoinrepublic.com/2025/12/24/ethereum-price-prediction-to-7k-amid-dropping-eth-balances-on-exchanges/
