ETH (Ethereum) increased by 1.18% in the past 24 hours

Gate News Bot Message, January 5th, according to CoinMarketCap data, as of press time, ETH (Ethereum) is trading at $3,184.04, up 1.18% in the past 24 hours, with a high of $3,211.38 and a low of $2,908.75. The 24-hour trading volume reached $14.6 billion. The current market capitalization is approximately $384.297 billion, an increase of $4.499 billion from yesterday.

Ethereum is a decentralized open-source blockchain network and software development platform powered by the cryptocurrency Ether (ETH). As a next-generation unstoppable application infrastructure, Ethereum provides a secure, global foundation that is open to everyone, permissionless, and without owners, built and maintained by thousands of individuals, organizations, and users worldwide.

Ether is the native cryptocurrency that drives the Ethereum network, used to pay transaction fees and secure the blockchain through staking. Beyond its technical role, ETH is an open, programmable digital currency used for global payments, as collateral for loans, and as a store of value independent of any central entity.

Recent Important ETH News:

1️⃣ Stablecoin Transfer Volume Hits Record High, Institutional Financial Applications Continue to Deepen In Q4 2024, the total stablecoin transfer volume on the Ethereum network first surpassed $8 trillion, setting a new record. Meanwhile, Ethereum’s on-chain issuance share in the stablecoin sector has exceeded 54%, far surpassing Tron’s 26.07%, Solana’s 5.03%, and BSC’s 4.74%. This indicates Ethereum is becoming the preferred infrastructure for institutional payment settlements, with the application depth and breadth of stablecoins in global finance accelerating, and Ethereum’s position as the core network supporting these applications continuously strengthening.

2️⃣ Developer Activity Reaches Record High, Infrastructure Construction Gains Momentum In Q4 2025, Ethereum deployed a total of 8.7 million smart contracts, setting a quarterly record. The high frequency of deployments reflects rapid development of DApps, real-world asset tokenization (RWA), stablecoins, and infrastructure, laying a solid foundation for the network’s ecological prosperity. Additionally, Aave’s ETH deposits on the Ethereum mainnet have reached an all-time high of over 3 million ETH, continuing toward 4 million, demonstrating strong momentum in liquidity mining and yield generation, further boosting ETH’s practical application value.

3️⃣ Institutional Capital Deployment Accelerates, Long-term Strategic Holdings Significantly Increase Strategic ETH reserve entities and spot ETFs hold a total of approximately 12.99 million ETH, accounting for 10.74% of the total supply, with a combined value of about $40.9 billion. Among them, strategic reserve entities hold 6.81 million ETH (5.63%), and spot ETFs hold 6.18 million ETH (5.11%). Blue Origin announced accepting ETH payments for space travel, a real-world application of Ethereum’s payment capabilities. Ether.fi CEO expects new crypto banks to become the core drivers of Ethereum’s growth in 2026. Institutions are adopting tools like Digital Asset Treasury (DATs), and early adopters are pushing Ethereum toward a more mature financial ecosystem.

4️⃣ Tokenized Asset Scale Expands, RWA Sector Shows Clear Advantages On-chain tokenized assets on Ethereum amount to approximately $12.5 billion, holding over 65% of the market share, far exceeding competing networks like BNB Chain, Solana, and Arbitrum. Tokenized gold trading is particularly prominent, with trading volume rising from $1 billion at the start of the year to over $4 billion, almost all concentrated within the Ethereum ecosystem. This trend indicates institutional investors view Ethereum as the preferred settlement layer for tokenized real-world assets, providing practical application foundations for ETH’s long-term value.

5️⃣ Clear Technical Roadmap, Promising Expansion Capabilities Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin confirmed that ZK-EVM has entered the alpha stage with production-level performance, and PeerDAS has officially launched on the mainnet. These upgrades are not incremental optimizations but aim to transform Ethereum into a new network model combining decentralization, consensus mechanisms, and high throughput. From 2026 onwards, mechanisms like BAL and ePBS will gradually increase the Gas limit; between 2026-2028, Gas re-pricing and state structure adjustments will occur; by 2027-2030, ZK-EVM is expected to become the main method for network verification of blocks, further driving Gas limit increases and providing clear technical support for Ethereum’s long-term scalability.

This news is not investment advice. Investors should be aware of market volatility risks.