260,000 ETH Snapped Up by Whales in 24H: Is a Rally Brewing?

TL;DR

• Ethereum whales added 260,000 ETH in one day, raising holdings to nearly 29.6 million coins.
• Exchange outflows peaked at 2.8 million ETH mid-August, matching Ethereum’s surge from $3,600 to $4,800.
• Merlijn sees the expansion phase confirmed, with multi-year resistance flipped to support and $7,000+ target projected.

Whale Accumulation Surges

Ethereum whale wallets holding between 10,000 and 100,000 ETH added around 260,000 tokens in the past 24 hours, data from analyst Ali Martinez shows. This increase brings their combined holdings close to 29.6 million ETH.

260,000 Ethereum $ETH bought by whales in the last 24 hours! pic.twitter.com/cCB3GfbuLJ

— Ali (@ali_charts) September 2, 2025

The move occurred as Ethereum traded within a relatively tight range, around $4,400. The one-day increase is among the largest in recent weeks and came while the price action stayed flat.

Separately, exchange flows also point to accumulation. August saw multiple days with more than 2 million ETH withdrawn, reaching a peak of 2.8 million ETH on August 14. That period matched Ethereum’s rise from $3,600 to almost $4,800, suggesting buyers were shifting holdings away from exchanges.

Late August brought continued high withdrawals even as the price consolidated around $4,300–$4,600. By early September, daily outflows fell below 500,000 ETH, showing a slowdown, though the price has remained steady.

Funding Rates Show Bullish Bias

Funding rates across exchanges stayed positive through August. This indicates that long positions dominated, with traders paying to hold bullish bets. Spikes in funding often lined up with price rallies, including mid-August when ETH approached $4,800.

On September 2, funding rates climbed close to 0.02, among the month’s highest levels, while ETH held at about $4,300. Positive and rising funding rates show leveraged traders are leaning bullish. Elevated funding, however, can increase the risk of corrections if long positions unwind.

Technical Breakout and Expansion Phase

Chart analysis from Merlijn The Trader shows Ethereum breaking above a multi-year resistance line that rejected the price several times since 2021. The breakout is now being retested as support.

Merlijn stated,

“Ethereum has entered the expansion phase… This isn’t resistance anymore. It’s the launchpad. $ETH $7,000+ is the play.”

His chart indicates ETH has respected both the upper resistance and lower support of a long-term channel, with the latest move suggesting the start of a new upward cycle.

As we reported yesterday, he also pointed out that Ethereum’s trend is moving in line with global M2 liquidity. The accumulation zone below $2,750 appears to have ended, with the current phase labeled as “Bull Run.”