Ethereum Repeatedly Fails to Hold $2,400 as On-Chain Slowdown, Competition Weigh

Ethereum has repeatedly failed to establish itself above $2,400, extending its underperformance against major cryptocurrencies this year.

Cointelegraph reported on May 6 that Ethereum has been unable to stay above $2,400 over the past three months and is down about 21% so far in 2026. By comparison, the total cryptocurrency market's capitalization has fallen about 11% over the same period, highlighting Ethereum's relative weakness.

The biggest drag has been slowing on-chain activity. Decentralized exchange, or DEX, trading volume has dropped about 53% over the past six months, while decentralized application, or DApp, revenue has fallen about 49%. A cooling memecoin market and a decline in token issuance have hurt activity, and a string of hacks has further damped investor sentiment.

Hack-related losses across the cryptocurrency industry reached about $630 million in April alone, with KelpDAO and Drift Protocol accounting for more than 80% of the total. Cybersecurity firm Hacken attributed the attacks to North Korean-linked actors.

Rising competition has also added pressure. Ethereum still leads in ecosystem scale, including Layer 2 networks, but Solana and Hyperliquid have rapidly expanded their presence and now account for about 42% of DApp revenue.

Institutional demand also remains limited. BitMine, the largest corporate holder of Ethereum among listed companies, spent about $12.2 billion to buy the token, but the holding is now valued at about $10.8 billion, leaving it in a loss position. While that is unlikely to trigger near-term selling pressure, it has reduced Ethereum's appeal to institutional investors.