Ethereum Holds Above $1,600 Amidst Vitalik Buterin’s Radical Scaling Proposal and Whale Accumulation
Ethereum (ETH) is trading above the $1,600 level, posting a gain of around 1.7% in the past 24 hours. ETH/USD price is showing strength
Quick overview
- Ethereum (ETH) is currently trading above $1,600, with a 1.7% gain in the last 24 hours, driven by significant on-chain activity from large investors.
- Vitalik Buterin has proposed replacing the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) with a RISC-V architecture to enhance scalability and efficiency, potentially increasing execution speed by up to 100x.
- Whale activity indicates a potential bullish trend, with a notable withdrawal of 1,897 ETH from an exchange, reflecting confidence in Ethereum's future value.
- Despite a temporary price recovery, Ethereum's network usage metrics show a decline, raising concerns about its long-term value proposition amid competition from layer-2 solutions.
Ethereum (ETH) is trading above $1,600 early on Monday, posting a gain of around 1.7% in the past 24 hours. ETH/USD price is supported by significant on-chain activity from large investors and a radical proposal from co-founder Vitalik Buterin which could dramatically enhance the network’s scalability and efficiency.
Vitalik Proposes RISC-V Replacement for EVM to Address Scalability Bottlenecks
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has suggested replacing the existing Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) with the RISC-V instruction set architecture in a possibly game-changing breakthrough. While maintaining the fundamental account and storage ideas of the Ethereum blockchain, the April 20 proposal seeks to increase the speed and efficiency of Ethereum’s execution layer.
Buterin found, among other long-term hurdles impeding Ethereum’s scalability, zero-knowledge EVM proving, competitive block production, and reliable data availability sampling. Particularly by maximizing zero-knowledge functions for the execution layer, the RISC-V implementation might offer efficiency increases of up to 100x.
“The beam chain effort holds great promise for greatly simplifying the consensus layer of Ethereum, but for the execution layer to see similar gains, this kind of radical change may be the only viable path,” Buterin wrote.
ETH/USD Technical Analysis
Ethereum’s technical indicators point to increasing momentum. Whereas the RSI shows upward approaching its neutral level of 50 on the daily chart, the hourly MACD is moving in the bullish zone. This shows declining bearish momentum; yet, the RSI needs to rise above 50 if positive attitude is to last.
“If ETH continues its recovery and closes above $1,700, it could extend the rally to retest its next daily resistance at $1,861,” adds one expert watching Ethereum’s price activity. On the other hand, ongoing correction might bring ETH down to test support at $1,449.
Whale Accumulation Signals Potential Bullish Momentum
The uptick in whale activity could indicate a potential shift in market mood. A prominent whale just withdrew 1,897 ETH (about $3 million) from the Bitget exchange, claims Lookonchain. This follows a trend of accumulation whereby the same entity has taken out 3,844 ETH ($6.51 million) overall since April 3.
Whale-based such massive accumulation generally indicates faith in the future value of an asset and can greatly affect the dynamics of markets. Ethereum’s trading volume increased noticeably across main trading pairs following the withdrawal.
Ethereum Network Usage Decline Raises Long-term Concerns
Ethereum’s network metrics show a mixed picture even with temporary price recovery. Blob fees from layer-2 scaling networks fell to a weekly low of 3.18 ETH (about $5,000) on March 30. With an average transaction value of about $0.16, Ethereum network costs dropped to their lowest level since 2020 in April 2025.
With many choosing layer-2 scaling solutions, this huge drop in fees reflects less users making transactions on the Ethereum base level. These solutions have “cannibalized” income on the base level, therefore raising questions regarding Ethereum’s long-term value proposition even if they have efficiently reduced transaction costs.
Ethereum’s competitive position versus high-throughput rivals like Solana and Sui networks may be changed if Buterin’s ground-breaking idea is implemented, so the market keenly observes both technical breakouts and the approaching important $1,700 level.
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