August is here, ETH merger is happening and PoS fans are hoping for Ethereum flip Bitcoin moment. Once the second largest proof of work cryptocurrency, Ether is abandoning the gas guzzling ship. All while cunningly leaving ETC to the miners to kill the trees with! The new and improved Ethereum 2.0 is as big as hope for Ethereum flip Bitcoin as it could get. Interestingly, it is taking place during one of the worst bear markets when most holders remain underwater. So far, Ethereum has been like an insignificant shadow of BTC following subordinately in its footsteps. Yet, with such daring mood of seismic scale, ETH is breaking free from the conservative club and maximalist bro community. And for once, the data suggests something out of the ordinary.
Recent research shows Ethereum flying off exchanges while BTC rushing in. While it could be a buy the rumor, sell the news moment, the customer sentiment may be much more long-term appropriate this time. After all, with all the fuel and energy shortage in the world, how long do miners have to continue their absurdity?
Ethereum Flip Bitcoin Paradox
This phrase has been flying around in all blog posts and Reddit articles for quite some time. A phenomenon which can dethrone the giant miners who act in coordination with one another. The titans of an industry who worship an unseen god named Satoshi and print money in their sleep. All in the name of anonymity and decentralization, they have kept on pathetically finishing only a handful of transactions per second. In the meantime, the proof of stake consensus can handle thousands of transactions just in one second.
Naturally, we’ve seen this before in history. A new and improved technology emerges and the leading figures in the old industry resist the change. They do this mostly by wordplay and wittily malignant justifications. Just read the Flying Machine short story for reference.
Nonetheless, this is the state of crypto market and Ethereum is waging war against the king. While Michael Saylor is out of the picture and Elon has betrayed the community for the thousand’s time, the maximalists have never been this fragile.
The Numbers
According to Lucas Outumuro, the head of research at analytics firm IntoTheBlock, Ether is leaving exchanges at a swift rate this week. Simultaneously, Bitcoin is rushing into exchanges, the places where the investors don’t actually own their assets (had to do it).
With a new analysis, Outumuro indicates that almost $1 billion in Ethereum moved out of exchanges. And this, is only during the past week.
For those unaware, moving crypto out of exchanges signals strong buying activity and a tendency to hold for long-term. Based on IntoTheBlock’s words, net flow is measured by getting the amount of inflows of any crypto asset to centralized exchanges minus the outflows.
On the other hand, during the same time period, BTC had centralized exchange net inflows of $132 million. Essentially, this is an indication of increasing selling pressure. However, bear in mind that such activities do not necessarily mean a massive plunge or significant crash.
Despite all that, both digital assets saw a spike in network activities according to Outumuro.
While the inflow and outflow statistics does not guarantee us an Ethereum Flip Bitcoin moment, it does illustrate a shift in sentiment. During the last bear market, many institutional investors fled the scene by selling their BTC. Biggest of which being Tesla, Bitcoin took a big hit. Now, looking at the current state of the market, a proof of stake Ethereum makes a lot more sense as a long-term option for institutional investors.
For one, ETH is or at least will be significantly energy efficient. Subsequently, the environmental regulations will not affect them. Furthermore, Satoshi is cool but he doesn’t talk or stay responsible for what he does and governments don’t like that. Ethereum does not have that shroud of mystery to entertain 15 year olds and is actually a functioning, responsible and responsive agency. So, with these two big reasons, ETH can attract big money in the long run. As for Bitcoin, the lightning network is the last hope for the old dog.