A recovery of more than 50% in Ethereum’s price has been recorded in May, with on-chain data indicating notable changes in investor behavior after the implementation of the Pectra upgrade. Significant milestones have been reached through increased exchange withdrawals, reduced reserves, and unprecedented whale accumulation, leading analysts to forecast elevated price levels in the near future.
According to data provided by Cryptorank, the amount of Ethereum held on centralized exchanges (CEXs) has declined from over 18 million to approximately 17 million within the span of a month. This drop of over 1 million ETH signifies a 5.5% reduction in the overall supply stored on exchanges.
It was reported by Cryptorank that over the last month, in excess of 1 million ETH have been withdrawn from centralized exchanges, representing roughly 5.5% of the total Ethereum held on those platforms. This pattern has been interpreted as an indication that users are increasingly opting to accumulate Ethereum instead of actively trading it.
Binance Tops Ethereum Withdrawal Rankings
Data from CryptoQuant indicates that withdrawals totaling over 300,000 ETH have been recorded on Binance alone in the past month. Since January, more than 800,000 ETH have been removed from the exchange by users.
These withdrawals were observed during Ethereum’s price drop below $1,400 in early April and intensified as the price recovered above $2,400 in May. The inverse relationship between declining exchange reserves and increasing prices has been seen as reinforcing a supply-demand balance that presently benefits bullish market sentiment.
On May 12, approximately 325,000 ETH were accumulated in a single day by whale wallets, according to CryptoQuant. This marked the highest single-day acquisition ever documented by large accumulation addresses.
When accumulation occurs on this scale by whales, ETH is generally withdrawn from exchanges and moved into cold wallet storage. This action decreases the circulating supply and frequently contributes to upward price pressure due to the tightening of market liquidity.
A longer-term price increase appears to be the objective of these large holders, rather than immediate liquidation, indicating that confidence is being placed in Ethereum’s fundamentals in the aftermath of the Pectra upgrade.
