Ethereum stalls near $2,700 as ETF outflows hit $118 million
Ethereum (ETH)
Editor:
Eugene Serbin
Startupfortune.com reports that Ether has climbed for three consecutive weeks but continues to stall just below the critical $2,800 resistance level. Trading around $2,700 on October 5, the token reclaimed ground lost in January but failed to secure a weekly close above $2,800, a threshold traders believe is necessary for a genuine alt season. While Ether holds above its 50-day, 100-day, and 200-day exponential moving averages, the inability to close a full week above $2,800 distinguishes this rally from a definitive breakout.
Bitcoin is also providing limited support for the alt-season narrative, sitting in the mid-$85,000s after reversing from near an eight-month high of $87,000. Ether has lagged Bitcoin over the latest weekly stretch, complicating the argument that altcoins are out-running Bitcoin. Institutions continued to buy dips, with $216.4 million flowing into spot ETH ETFs on September 11, but this trend reversed shortly after.
Farside Investors data shows spot Ether ETFs experienced roughly $118 million in net outflows over five trading sessions through October 2. Fidelity's FETH led redemptions with $23.5 million, followed closely by Grayscale's ETHE at $20.4 million. Despite these recent outflows, US spot Ether ETFs have pulled in approximately $1.5 billion in net inflows for the year, outpacing Bitcoin's $985 million. Ether posted its second-best third quarter on record, gaining more than 60%, yet remains about 47% below its August 2025 all-time high.
How the market reacted
Whalio's own Binance spot order flow for ETH, measured when this story was written up on 5 October 2026. Not the outlet's figures.
Whalio spot data shows Ethereum trading at $2,726.94 with a 24-hour buy ratio of 53.8%, indicating that buyers are currently in control of the daily trend. However, shorter timeframes show weakening momentum, with the 1-hour buy ratio dropping to 39.4% and the 4-hour ratio at 46.0%, suggesting that immediate buying pressure is fading. The 24-hour volume delta is positive at +$20,326,998, meaning net buying has outweighed net selling over the last day, but the 1-hour delta of -$9,209,200 reveals recent selling dominance. The CVD for the 24-hour close sits at +$10,250,443, confirming that cumulative buying has exceeded selling over the full day. Despite the positive daily delta, the lower short-term buy ratios imply that the recent upward momentum is losing strength intraday.
The latest daily buy ratio of 46.8% sits at the 16th percentile of the last 322 days, against a median of 49.5% - weaker buying than most days.
Was that an ordinary day?
The same Binance spot measurements for ETH, averaged over the days leading up to the story.
Over the preceding week, the average buy ratio was 48.9%, and the latest day's 53.8% represents a 4.9-point increase, showing a temporary shift toward buying. However, spot volume for the day was only 0.38 times the weekly average, indicating that this buying surge occurred on significantly lower participation than usual. The 8-day volume delta totaled -$183,164,000, contrasting with the day's positive delta and highlighting that the broader weekly trend remains net negative. Only two of the past seven days saw net buying, suggesting that this recent positive reading is an unusual spike rather than a sustained trend. The disparity between the low volume and the improved buy ratio points to a fragile recovery that has not yet been supported by broad market participation.