Ethereum's Slide to $2,100 Raises Risk of Large-Scale Long Liquidations

Bitcoin and Ether are the crypto market’s two largest assets, and their prices often drive moves in altcoins and derivatives positions. Exchanges forcibly close highly leveraged contracts when their margin becomes insufficient, and cascading liquidations can deepen a decline. Liquidation totals therefore offer a gauge of market risk and investor sentiment.

In the early hours of June 10, 2026, Taipei time, Bitcoin broke below the $63,000 support level and fell through $61,000, while Ether tested $1,600. CoinGlass data showed that more than 120,000 traders were liquidated over 24 hours, with total liquidations reaching $380 million and the largest single order on Binance totaling $8.05 million. By June 25, BTC had fallen below $60,000 again, with liquidations exceeding $650 million and nearly 140,000 traders affected.

Ether is the native asset of the Ethereum network, and its price volatility directly affects leveraged trading and onchain financial activity. A 20% workforce reduction at the Ethereum Foundation has deepened market concerns, although Ethereum still accounts for 53% of the DeFi market. The scale of its ecosystem remains an important pillar for a medium- to long-term recovery.

On the Tuesday covered by the report, Ether fell about 5% as the broader crypto market also declined, triggering roughly $170 million in liquidations of Ether long positions. The forced unwinding of large leveraged positions reflected weak investor confidence in the near-term outlook while amplifying price volatility and the risk of further declines.

Ethereum’s Ether, or ETH, and Bitcoin, or BTC, are key benchmarks for the crypto-asset market. Investor concerns over blockchain security and market liquidity rose after a critical Zcash bug emerged. Bitcoin’s fall below the psychologically important $60,000 level also intensified selling pressure on ETH, pushing sentiment into extremely bearish territory and increasing the risk of cascading liquidations.

In the latest selloff, ETH plunged to $1,540 on Friday, its lowest level in 13 months, while BTC fell below $60,000. A total of $1.28 billion in leveraged long positions was liquidated in the derivatives market over the previous five days. Traders began to fear that ETH could fall further to $1,400, with its near-term direction hinging on whether BTC can reclaim the key threshold.

Ethereum is a leading blockchain for smart contracts and decentralized finance, while the price of ETH is also a gauge of risk appetite in the crypto market. Reports on February 24, 2026, showed that U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff policies had fueled risk aversion. ETH plunged 38% over 30 days to about $1,830 and fell below the $2,380 realized price calculated by Glassnode.

On June 3, 2026, ETH fell as low as $1,814 on Bitstamp, its lowest level in 14 weeks. SoSoValue data showed that U.S. spot Ethereum ETFs had recorded net outflows for 16 consecutive days, totaling $847.2 million. CryptoQuant's Coinbase Premium Index fell to -0.16 on May 28, reflecting weak U.S. spot demand and signaling that downside risks remain.

On March 3, 2026, Ether again faced selling pressure after rebounding above $2,000. The $1,800–$1,900 range emerged as the dividing line between bulls and bears because it was near the lower boundary of a daily symmetrical triangle. Glassnode data showed that about 1.23 million ETH had been purchased at an average price of $1,890 over the previous 30 days. CoinGlass estimated that $624 million in long positions was exposed to liquidation above $1,800, raising the risk of steeper losses if that level failed.

By May 29, 2026, Ether had fallen 7% over three days and slipped below $2,000. CryptoQuant put the leverage ratio at about 0.74 and the RSI at 31, while Binance’s cumulative net taker volume fell to negative $744 million, its lowest since April 6. US spot Ethereum ETFs recorded $695 million in net outflows over 13 consecutive days. If the $1,800–$1,750 range fails, the next target zone is $1,550–$1,400.

Ether is the second-largest crypto asset by market capitalization after Bitcoin, and its price has broad implications for DeFi and staking markets. In May 2026, the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury exceeded 4.6%, well above ETH's annualized staking yield of about 2.5%. Outflows from U.S. spot ETH ETFs also weakened both the appeal of holding ETH for yield and institutional demand.

On May 28, ETH fell below $2,000 for the first time since late March, trading at about $1,980. It was down more than 5% over 24 hours and nearly 8% over seven days. Coinglass data showed futures open interest rising for a third consecutive day to a record 16.39 million ETH, with a notional value of about $32.5 billion. U.S. spot ETFs recorded $401 million in net outflows in May, reversing net inflows of $354 million in April and reflecting increased leveraged short positioning.

Ethereum is a key pillar of decentralized finance, or DeFi. Total value locked, or TVL, measures the value of assets deposited in onchain protocols and is commonly used as an indicator of capital flows and user demand. Weakening technical signals for ETH alongside shrinking TVL may indicate that both risk appetite and onchain momentum are cooling, putting the $1,800 support zone in focus.

Cointelegraph reported on May 26, 2026, that ETH had fallen 13% from a high above $2,400 and formed a bear flag on the daily chart. A break below $2,060 would point to $1,800, which was 14% below the price at the time. DefiLlama data showed Ethereum TVL had fallen to $116 billion, a 13-month low and 55% below its $258 billion peak on August 14, 2025.

Ethereum is one of the largest smart-contract and DeFi ecosystems, and the price of ETH influences both on-chain capital flows and institutional risk appetite. Since April 14, 2026, ETH has largely traded between $2,250 and $2,400. The $2,400 level has rejected rallies five times within a month, making it a key dividing line between bulls and bears.

On May 8, ETH fell more than 5.6% to $2,275 after another rejection at $2,400. Nansen reported that transaction volume fell 10% to 4.79 million, while active addresses declined 8% to 2.5 million. The Coinbase Premium has been negative since April 27, and U.S. spot ETFs recorded net outflows of $103 million on May 7. The chart pattern points to a potential decline toward $1,830.

Ethereum is the second-largest crypto asset by market capitalization, while Hyperliquid is a decentralized trading platform focused on perpetual futures. The whale used 20x leverage to bet on an ETH rally. The position, worth about $90.8 million, has become an important gauge of market risk appetite and short-term capital flows because of its size.

Reports said the whale recently opened an ETH long position worth about $90.8 million on Hyperliquid, but did not disclose the exact date it was established. ETH has formed an ascending triangle on the technical chart, and analysts expect a breakout above consolidation resistance could put the short-term price target at $3,230. The 20x leverage also carries significant liquidation risk if the price pulls back.

Ethereum is the second-largest crypto asset by market capitalization after Bitcoin, and $2,000 is a key psychological level in the contest between bulls and bears. The MVRV Z-Score measures the gap between market value and realized value. A move into the accumulation zone typically indicates that an asset is undervalued and could draw long-term buyers back into the market.

Ethereum has rebounded about 18% from its February low and recently reclaimed and held the $2,000 support level. Onchain data show that the MVRV Z-Score has entered the accumulation zone, while market volatility has climbed to its highest level in nearly 12 months. Analysts say these signals suggest ETH is shifting from low-volatility consolidation into a highly volatile phase of bottom formation and recovery.