Ether Futures Open Interest Plunges; Break Below $1,500 Could Send ETH Toward $1,000

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.

Ether (ETH), the Ethereum network's native asset, often reflects onchain activity and risk appetite in the broader crypto market. Citing TradingView on April 28, Cointelegraph reported that ETH had fallen below $2,300 and was trading between its 100-day exponential moving average of $2,350 and its 100-day simple moving average of $2,220. The $2,200 level was seen as crucial support for bulls seeking to avert a deeper correction.

A May 18 report showed ETH had fallen 12% from its May 6 peak of $2,420, touching a low of $2,090 on May 17. CryptoQuant said hourly taker sell volume on Binance had exceeded $1.1 billion, while U.S. spot Ether ETFs recorded $255 million in net outflows over five days. About 3.85 million ETH had a cost basis between $2,000 and $2,100, and a break below $2,000 could send the price toward $1,700.