Ethena faces sell pressure after token unlock
Ethena (ENA)
Editor:
Eugene Serbin
tradersunion.com reports that Ethena (ENA) is trading at $0.1507, down 9.54% on the day. The asset is positioned below its short- and mid-term moving averages but remains above its long-term average. A major unlock event on September 2 released 40.63 million ENA tokens into circulation, expanding supply and increasing potential sell-side activity.
Substantial deposits of 14 million ENA to Bybit further heightened exchange liquidity, raising the likelihood of short-term selling pressure. The Ethena Foundation announced buybacks of early investor tokens, the ending of monthly unlocks, and planned repurchases using protocol fees. These measures aim to offset the supply impact and adjust the protocol's value distribution.
Despite these actions, the dominant effect has been an increase in available tokens, contributing to recent negative price momentum. On the hourly chart, ENA/USD trades below the MA-20 at $0.1547 and the MA-50 at $0.1591. The MA-200 at $0.1014 offers longer-term support, while the Ichimoku Kijun at $0.1584 represents immediate resistance.
Momentum indicators are skewed towards further weakness, with MACD on Strong Sell and ADX signaling a Sell bias. The RSI is at 37.69, and CCI indicates a Sell condition, while Bull/Bear Power confirms seller dominance. However, the Stoch RSI is overbought, suggesting possible short-term exhaustion among sellers.
Over the next two to three sessions, ENA/USD is expected to trade within a $0.142 to $0.1605 range. The probability of a sustained upward move is assessed as very low, while the likelihood of further decline remains high if selling persists.
How the market reacted
Whalio's own Binance spot order flow for ENA, measured when this story was written up on 10 September 2026. Not the outlet's figures.
Whalio data shows ENA trading at $0.1521 with a 1-hour buy ratio of 47.0% and a 4-hour buy ratio of 51.2%. The 24-hour buy ratio stands at 50.9%, indicating that buying pressure is roughly balanced over the longer timeframe but slightly weaker in the immediate short term. The 1-hour volume delta is -$57,870, showing net selling in the last hour, while the 4-hour delta is +$73,312 and the 24-hour delta is +$811,374, reflecting net buying over longer periods. The CVD at 24-hour close is +$388,484, confirming that cumulative buying has outweighed selling over the day. There were 12 hours of net buying out of 24, with a total spot volume of $42,004,574 and 212,808 trades. This suggests that while immediate selling pressure exists, the broader flow remains net positive.
The latest daily buy ratio of 42.7% sits at the 1st percentile of the last 324 days, against a median of 49.0% - among the weakest buying days it has had.
Was that an ordinary day?
The same Binance spot measurements for ENA, averaged over the days leading up to the story.
Over the preceding week, the 7-day average buy ratio was 49.1%, compared to the latest day's 50.9%, a difference of 1.8 points. Volume was 1.03x the average, indicating slightly higher activity than usual. Only 1 of the past 7 days saw net buying, and the 8-day volume delta was -$3,867,693. The price change over 8 days was +1.9%. This day is slightly more active than average but not unusual in terms of volume, though the net selling over the week contrasts with the day's net buying.