ETH struggles below $2,300, but analysts believe there’s more pain ahead.

The largest altcoin was hit hard over the past few weeks, dropping from over $3,000 to a multi-month low of $2,100.

Despite this substantial double-digit crash in the span of mere days, though, a few popular analysts recently indicated that the bottom has not been reached yet.

One of them, going by the X handle CW, indicated that ETH plummeted to a major buying wall at $2,100. If it’s to reverse anytime soon, the first significant sell wall is at $2,560.

Ali Martinez based his bottom prediction on the Market Value to Realized Value (MVRV) band, a metric that helps identify potential trend reversals.

He said that Ethereum has historically bottomed out when it dropped below the 0.80 MVRV band. If history repeats itself now, it would result in a price drop to just under $2,000.

Ethereum $ETH bottoms have historically formed below the 0.80 MVRV band.

Today, that level is near $1,959. pic.twitter.com/cgcuy2OgvI

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— Ali Charts (@alicharts) February 4, 2026

Crypto Tony shared a similar opinion. The analyst with over 560,000 followers on X noted that ETH could go down to the major support and psychological level of $2,000 before it rebounds decisively.

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His chart is quite optimistic as it shows a quick surge to $3,600 before another calamity to yearly lows at $1,500 by the summer of 2026. However, the 1-week macro chart is highly bullish as it predicts a massive run to new all-time highs above $6,000.

$ETH / $USD – Macro Update

Personally i am looking for a bottoming to come in at $2000 level. Major support zone and a psychological level. pic.twitter.com/8VGHOQOx9t

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— Crypto Tony (@CryptoTony__) February 4, 2026

Even though a significant portion of the non-fungible token market has experienced a severe downturn, with reports reportedly suggesting that over 70% of collections are now considered “dead” or worthless, specific segments of the NFT market remain profitable. Earlier today, an investor who bought his CryptoPunk for 42 ETH in August 2021 finally sold it for 120 ETH, making nearly $300,000 in solid profit.

In other news, there was a 120 ETH ($382k USD) Hoodie CryptoPunk sale three hours ago.

The seller bought it 5 years ago, August 2021, for 42 ETH ($83k USD).

Nice flip pic.twitter.com/ODUzapWF3g

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— wale.moca 🐳 (@waleswoosh) January 20, 2026

Iconic Hoodie Punk NFT Sells For $382K

Data compiled by CryptoSlam.io, an on-chain crypto market aggregator and non-fungible token explorer tracking NFT collections from more than 20 blockchain networks, confirmed that iconic Hoodie Punk #9901 has found a new holder. This NFT collection, previously bought for 42 ETH, equivalent to 87,299 five years ago, was sold for 120 ETH, equivalent to $382,026. This humble and patient investor has pocketed nearly $300,00 in profit.

In response to the recent mega sale, the CryptoPunks NFT collection has surged by 60% to +$1.3 million in the past 24 hours. During this period, the global NFT market has surged by 108% to $14 million, while Ethereum NFT trading volume has increased by 274% to $9.9 million. Other NFT collections that have skyrocketed today include the Pudgy Penguins, which have risen by +50% and the Moonbirds, which have surged by 82%.

Launched in 2017, CryptoPunks is a globally acknowledged non-fungible token series previously from the digital asset firm ‘Larva Labs’ but now managed by the non-profit organization, Infinite Node Foundation. The iconic NFT collection, Punks, has a fixed supply of 10,000 pixilated NFTs hosted on the Ethereum blockchain. The CryptoPunks is one of the leading NFT series in the global NFT market.

What’s The Future Of Punks NFTs

The iconic Punk NFT collection came into the limelight in 2021 during the historic NFT bull run. At the time, rare punks sold for millions of dollars. Nonetheless, the future of Punks NFTs is shifting from speculative arts towards long-term preservation as “blue-chip” digital art. As pioneers in the NFT space, Punks are cemented as historical artifacts, with their value increasingly tied to their cultural significance and status as proof of digital ownership.

Related NFT News:

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Nearly a full year has passed since Pi opened its network and was listed on exchanges. However, Pi’s price performance has disappointed many Pioneers, as the token has dropped around 94% from its all-time high. Recent activity suggests the Pi Core Team may be rolling out new plans to strengthen the ecosystem.

At the same time, heavy unlock pressure is raising concerns that the downtrend could worsen.

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Pi Core Team Moves Over 500 Million Pi in Early February

Wallet addresses labeled by Piscan — a Pi Network data tracking platform — as belonging to the Pi Core Team recorded several large transactions in the first days of February. This activity came as Pi’s price fell about 25% year to date, trading near $0.16.

One major transaction involved the PI Foundation 1 wallet moving 500 million Pi, worth more than $80 million. The wallet did not transfer Pi to exchanges. Instead, the funds were sent to another internal wallet also labeled as PI Foundation 1.

The move followed an announcement from the Pi Core Team stating that more than 16 million Pioneers have completed Mainnet migration. Around 2.5 million Pioneers who were previously blocked due to security checks have now been unblocked and can migrate.

The team also announced that over the next few weeks, more than 700,000 Pioneers will gain access to apply for KYC. In addition, a reward distribution system for KYC validators is currently being tested. Deployment is expected by the end of March 2026.

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Many Pioneers believe the team’s on-chain transfers are preparations for upcoming plans.

“These updates reflect ongoing efforts to expand access to KYC and Mainnet migration, enabling broader participation in Pi’s ecosystem,” Pi Network stated.

On the positive side, more Pioneers completing Mainnet migration could make the Pi ecosystem more active and boost demand. However, it may also test long-term investor confidence, pushing holders to decide whether to sell or continue holding.

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More Than 193 Million Pi to Unlock in February

Piscan data shows that more than 193 million Pi will unlock in February, worth over $31 million. This is the largest unlock amount scheduled for the period from now to October 2027.

On average, the next 30 days will see more than 7 million Pi unlocked per day, equivalent to around $1.1 million.

A recent BeInCrypto report noted that Pi’s trading volume on exchanges has dropped sharply. Daily volume remains weak, showing no improvement and staying below $20 million. Low volume combined with heavy unlock pressure creates a negative mix that continues to weigh on price.

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However, early February has shown some signs of demand returning. Exchange balance data compiled by Piscan indicates that Pi reserves on exchanges have started to decline after months of staying elevated.

Pi exchange balances currently stand at around 419.9 million Pi, down from 427 million Pi last month. While the decline is still modest, it suggests that early accumulation may be underway as prices remain low.

BeInCrypto’s latest analysis suggests positive sentiment could return. February is seen as the anniversary month of Pi Network’s exchange debut. Investors are also looking ahead to Pi Day in March.

Several layer-2 builders responded after Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin said the original vision of L2s as the primary scaling engine “no longer makes sense,” calling for a shift toward specialization.

In a Wednesday post, Buterin argued that many L2s have failed to fully inherit Ethereum’s security due to continued reliance on multisig bridges, while the base layer is increasingly capable of handling more throughput via gas-limit increases and future native rollups.

The comments prompted responses from Ethereum layer 2s, who broadly agreed that rollups must evolve beyond being cheaper versions of Ethereum but diverged on whether scaling should remain central to their role.

The Ethereum ecosystem is grappling with a shifting roadmap that aims to make the base layer more capable, while L2s reposition themselves as specialized environments serving distinct technical needs.

Ethereum L2 builders accept shift, differ on scaling’s role

Karl Floersch, a co-founder of the Optimism Foundation, said in an X post that he welcomed the challenge of building a modular L2 stack that supports “the full spectrum of decentralization.”

He also acknowledged that major hurdles exist. These include long withdrawal windows, the lack of production-ready Stage 2 proofs and insufficient tooling for cross-chain apps. 

“Stage 2 isn’t production-ready,” Floersch wrote, adding that existing proofs are not yet secure enough to support major bridges. He also supported native Ethereum precompile for rollups, a concept that Buterin recently emphasized as a way to make trustless verification more accessible.

Steven Goldfeder, the co-founder of Arbitrum developer Offchain Labs, took a more forceful stance in a lengthy X thread. He argued that while the rollup model has evolved, scaling remains a core value of L2s. 

Goldfeder said Arbitrum was not built as a “service to Ethereum,” but because Ethereum provides a high-security, low-cost settlement layer that makes large-scale rollups viable.

He also pushed back on the idea that a scaled Ethereum mainnet could replace the throughput currently handled by L2 networks. Goldfeder cited periods of high activity when Arbitrum and Base processed over 1,000 transactions per second, while Ethereum handled fewer. 

He warned that if Ethereum was perceived to be hostile to rollups, institutions might launch independent layer-1 chains rather than deploy on Ethereum. 

Related: Stablecoin ‘dust’ txs on Ethereum triple post-Fusaka: Coin Metrics

Base frames differentiation, Starknet hints alignment

Jesse Pollak, head of Base, said in an X post that Ethereum’s L1 scaling was “a win for the entire ecosystem.” He agreed that L2s cannot just be “Ethereum but cheaper.” 

Pollak said Base has focused on onboarding users and developers while working toward Stage 2 decentralization, adding that differentiation through applications, account abstraction and privacy features align with the direction Buterin outlined. 

StarkWare CEO Eli Ben-Sasson, whose company develops the non-EVM Starknet rollup, offered a brief but pointed reaction on X, writing: “Say Starknet without saying Starknet.”

Ben-Sasson’s comment hinted that some ZK-native L2s see themselves as already fitting the specialized role Buterin described.

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