ETH Price Analysis Oct 22, 2023

• Ethereum (ETH) price prodded above the $1,645 level on Sunday, October 22, 2023, its highest since the Middle East crisis escalated two weeks ago.
• On-chain data shows that US-based crypto whales trading on Coinbase Pro have increased their buying interest in ETH to a 100-day peak, while interest in BTC has cooled since Thursday
• Technical indicators highlight that ETH price rally could overtake BTC in the days ahead. 

Ethereum (ETH) price prodded above the $1,645 level on Sunday, October 22, 2023, its highest since the Middle East crisis escalated two weeks ago. On-chain data shows that large institutional investors have gradually shifted focus from Bitcoin to ETH recently, while technical indicators highlight key price resistance levels. 

Large Crypto Investors are Switching Focus from BTC to ETH 

When the Middle East crisis escalated around October 7, Ethereum price suffered a significant dip along with the rest of the global crypto market. 

To power a market recovery and hedge against the looming economic downturn, investors piled a large portion of their capital inflows into BTC. In effect Bitcoin price quickly rose 13% to reclaim $30,000, leaving other mega-cap altcoins like ETH and XRP and Litecoin (LTC) in its wake. 

However, after weeks of industry-wide consolidation and recovery, crypto whales are making early attempts to diversify and channel their BTC gains toward the altcoin market. On-chain data sources show that Ethereum price could emerge one of the biggest gainers from this emerging theme. 

CryptoQuant’s Coinbase Premium Index chart shows the percentage difference between the price of Ethereum on Binance and Coinbase. 

This metric is important because, Binance dominates more than 50% of the global retail trading volumes, while Coinbase Pro is dominated by US-based corporate entities and high net-worth investors looking to trade crypto in a more regulated landscape.

Hence when the Coinbase Premium Index metric breaks into green or positive values, it shows that Ethereum price on Coinbase exchange has marginally exceeded prices currently quoted on Binance. 

On October 20, Ethereum Premium index broke into unusually high positive values, reaching a 100-day peak of 0.067%. 

Notably, the last time ETH price on Coinbase pro exceeded Binance prices by this margin was on July 13. At the time, Ripple (XRP) victory over the SEC sent corporate investors into a crypto buying spree. And within 48 hours, ETH price rose from 6% from $1,830 to $1,940.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin’s Premium Index, has trended below 0.055% since October 20. This suggests that US-based crypto whales trading on Coinbase pro have increased the buying pressure on ETH to a 90-day peak while interest in BTC has cooled since Thursday. 

Ethereum Price Forecast:  $1,700 is the Next Target

Ethereum (ETH) is currently trading at $1,630, and the daily-time frame technical analysis suggests a growing bullish momentum.

The immediate resistance level stands at the Pivot High of $1,751. If the bullish momentum continues, Ethereum may encounter resistance here. A decisive breakout above this level could open the path for further gains.

In the event of a significant bullish surge, the next higher resistance is seen at around $1,850. This level has historical significance and may trigger a strong bullish move if broken.

With the current bullish momentum, Ethereum looks poised for potential gains. However, in the case of sudden bearish reversal, strategic traders would keep an eye on the Pivot Low of $1,521 for initial support. 

Below that, the Ethereum price might find a stronger support level around $1,450, which is a key psychological level.