Bitcoin is worth more than $1 trillion than Ethereum

Bitcoin has taken the largest price lead in recent history over the altcoin ecosystem, leaving eternal number two, Ethereum, in the dust.

The market capitalization of OG cryptocurrencies currently exceeds the second-largest cryptocurrency by more than $1 trillion and marks the lowest price relative to the top cryptocurrencies since the beginning of 2021.

Bitcoin’s $1 trillion lead

Bitcoin traded at $68,180 on Thursday, giving it a market capitalization of $1.34 trillion, according to CoinGecko. In comparison, Ethereum traded at $2,530, giving it a market cap of $305 billion.

This leaves the ETH/BTC ratio at just 0.037, the lowest level recorded in April 2021, following Ethereum's meteoric rise over the past 12 months. During the last bull market, Ethereum followed the same general price trends as other major altcoins. In other words, as Bitcoin rose, so did Ethereum.

Not this time. Since Ethereum's long-awaited merge upgrade took place in September 2022, the top smart contract platform has lost 50% of its value to BTC, even though the entire crypto market has risen in dollar terms since then. I lost more than %.

Over the past two years, some of the most bullish factors in cryptocurrencies have centered around Bitcoin. In March 2023, as several U.S. banks went bankrupt, investors flocked to Bitcoin due to its reputation as “digital gold.” Bitcoin then rallied for several months on excitement over the Bitcoin Spot ETF approval, and then again in 2024 following the ETF's huge success.

During this time, Bitcoin's dominance has returned to multi-year highs, with the asset currently worth 59% of the entire crypto market, according to TradingView.

Ethereum’s lackluster performance

Unlike the Bitcoin ETF, which has absorbed over $20 billion in net flows since its launch, the Ethereum Spot ETF, which began operations in July, has remained in net flows since then due to losses from the Grayscale Ethereum Trust (ETHE). The negative flow continues.

According to CryptoQuant, the decline in the Coinbase Premium Index suggests that institutional investors may be reducing their exposure to ETH.

However, online Ethereum bulls remain defiant despite the poor performance. Ethereum educator Anthony Sasal said Wednesday that Ethereum's L2 is dismantling the existing FUD that Ethereum is a slow and expensive network, and that current bears on the network are turning it into just a “bandwagon.” He insisted that it was not too much.

“The only thing ETH lacks at the moment is confidence, but that could change overnight,” Bankless podcast host Ryan Sean Adams added on Wednesday.