Quite a few market participants maintain a positive outlook for Bitcoin as the fourth quarter approaches, driven by stable macroeconomic factors and institutional investment.
However, concerns remain regarding Ethereum’s declining market share and fee generation.
VanEck noted that Bitcoin rose more than 7% in September, helped by the Federal Reserve’s interest rate cut and China’s economic stimulus measures. That growth outpaced ETH, which rose just 3.2%.
Bitcoin’s recent upswing, marked by net inflows of $1.2 billion into U.S. exchange-traded products (ETPs) for Bitcoin, reflects growing investor confidence. Since their launch, these ETPs have accumulated more Bitcoin than has been mined, significantly impacting price trends.
Conversely, Ethereum is struggling, with fee generation plummeting and market share reaching a five-year low. However, mid-month saw signs of recovery, with fee market share recovering from 31% in August to 45% in September.
Ethereum’s move to a second-layer settlement layer for blockchains, following the introduction of EIP-4844, reduced demand for its blockchain space, causing revenue to fall from $7.2 billion in March to $1.2 billion in September.
While Ethereum is aiming for long-term mass adoption, short-term challenges could undermine its market position. In contrast, Bitcoin’s institutional support and strong momentum are strengthening its position in the digital asset market.
Bitcoin may not have reached its peak in the current market cycle, according to a recent analysis by crypto analytics firm Alphractal.
Ethereum co-founder and Consensys CEO Joe Lubin believes Ethereum’s growing use in corporate treasuries could redefine how traditional finance views the second-largest digital asset.
A wave of large-scale altcoin deposits has hit centralized exchanges over the past 24 hours, according to data from on-chain analytics platform Santiment.
BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) has officially crossed the 700,000 BTC mark, reinforcing its position as one of the fastest-growing exchange-traded funds in financial history.