Weekly Cryptocurrency Price Surges: A Look at the Top 10 Performers in Week 33
In a recent development, Ethereum (ETH) has experienced a significant surge, with its price nearly reaching its all-time high of $4,800. This upward trend is attributed to a combination of factors, including institutional adoption, network upgrades, and favourable macroeconomic conditions.
The sudden increase in Ethereum ETF purchases is primarily driven by institutional adoption, regulatory clarity, and the attractive yield and deflationary aspects of Ethereum's network and staking model. This institutional interest is reinforced by large-scale inflows, such as $10.8 billion in Q2 2025 and multiple hundreds of millions in spot ETF inflows in August 2025, signaling growing confidence and strategic, long-term allocations rather than speculative trading.
Significant Ethereum ETF inflows—over $2.3 billion in August alone—and notable whale movements of Bitcoin converted into Ether underline strong buying pressure and long-term holding sentiment. The surge in Ethereum's price is also boosted by recent network upgrades like Pectra and Dencun, which have reduced gas fees by over 50%, improving usability and attracting decentralized finance (DeFi) and other applications.
Ethereum's Proof of Stake (PoS) system offers 4-6% staking yields, contrasting Bitcoin’s zero yield, along with a deflationary issuance model with about 0.7% inflation, which supports scarcity and price appreciation. Favourable macro factors such as Federal Reserve interest rate cuts are also enhancing investor appeal, contributing to Ethereum's upward trajectory.
Ethereum's dominant role as digital infrastructure for DeFi ($140 billion total value locked) and growing Layer 2 and NFT ecosystems further support demand. Price-wise, technical indicators are bullish, with Ethereum trading above key exponential moving averages and poised to retest all-time highs. Forecasts suggest a potential rise to $6,500 in 2025 and possibly $10,000 by 2026, supported by inflows, network advances, and the macro environment.
The cryptocurrency market has taken an unexpected turn, with the altcoin market cap hitting $1.4 trillion and Bitcoin dominance dropping from 65% to 59%. Several other cryptocurrencies have also seen significant gains, including Aerodrome Finance, Lido DAO, Raydium, Arbitrum, Hyperliquid, Chainlink, Cardano, and OKB, each gaining around 20% or more.
Notably, OKB has seen a massive 111% jump to $96.01, while Ethena added 18%. In a move to further reduce its supply, OKX announced plans for a one-time burn of over 65 million OKB tokens, cutting its fixed supply down to 21 million.
In summary, the surge in Ethereum ETF purchases is a manifestation of growing institutional legitimacy and confidence backed by network upgrades, staking economics, whale accumulation, and positive macroeconomic context—all coalescing to drive Ethereum’s price upward. As the cryptocurrency market continues to evolve, it will be interesting to see how these trends unfold in the coming months.
Institutional investors are increasingly showing interest in Ethereum, as evidenced by significant Ethereum ETF inflows and large-scale purchases, bolstered by attractive staking yields and deflationary aspects of Ethereum's network. This renewed focus on Ethereum is not just limited to investing, as technology plays a crucial role in driving growth, with network upgrades like Pectra and Dencun reducing gas fees and improving usability, attracting decentralized finance (DeFi) and other applications.
