Ethereum

Delta

when

Spot

Key takeaways:
<ul>
 <li>Ether bears are getting louder as the price remains rangebound.</li>
 <li>Declining spot volume signals weak demand and increasing ETH price vulnerability.</li>
 <li>ETH price could drop to $3,500 if key support levels are lost.</li>
</ul>
 Ether (<a href="https://cointelegraph.com/ethereum-price" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">ETH</a>) remains stuck in the $4,200-$4,500 range for two weeks, amid decreasing spot and institutional demand. This has made some traders bearish, eyeing ETH price falling to $3,500 before any potential recovery.
<figure><img src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2025-09/019932e0-0cf2-7995-8300-44fee120a5d6" title="" alt="ETH price to $3.5K first? Why Ethereum bears are growing louder">
 <figcaption style="text-align: center;">ETH/USD four-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/<a href="https://www.tradingview.com/x/kKhJklz4/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">TradingView</a>
 </figcaption>
</figure>
<h2 id="market-sentiment-turns-negative">Market sentiment turns negative</h2>
The choppiness in Ether’s price, coupled with <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/bitcoin-drops-under-109k-how-low-can-btc-price-go-next" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">Bitcoin’s recent drop below $100,000</a>, saw a shift in market sentiment as “sell calls” intensified, according to Santiment.
“Traders have changed their tunes, swinging more and more negatively with expectations of Bitcoin falling back below $100K, Ethereum back below $3.5K,” the market intelligence firm <a href="https://x.com/santimentfeed/status/1965512799700111621" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">said</a> in an X post on Tuesday.&nbsp;
Related: <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/ethereum-validator-exit-queue-increase-concerns-eth-educator" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Ethereum validator exit queue to spike as Kiln moves tokens</a>
An accompanying chart shows a surge in keywords like “selling” and “bearish” since late August, when <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/eth-hits-new-highs-as-fed-turns-dovish-ether-etf-inflows-resume#:~:text=ETH%20hits%20new%20all%2Dtime,send%20Ether%20well%20above%20%245%2C000.&amp;text=Key%20takeaways%3A,250%25%20from%20its%20April%20lows." rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">Ether hit its $4,950 all-time high</a>.
However, markets often move opposite the crowd’s expectations, which could actually be “signalling an ideal buy time,” Santiment writes.
<figure><img alt="ETH price to $3.5K first? Why Ethereum bears are growing louder" src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2025-09/019932e2-5977-751a-b86e-cb9e7b9bbc43" title="">
 <figcaption style="text-align: center;">Crypto social volume: Bullish vs. bearish key words. Source: Santiment
 </figcaption>
</figure>
<h2 id="ethereum-traders-step-back">Ethereum traders step back</h2>
Ether’s spot demand remains subdued over two weeks, with ETH trading volume falling to $2.6 billion on Sept. 8 from $18.5 billion on Aug. 22, an 85% decrease, Glassnode data shows.
The decline in spot volume signals waning investor participation, reflecting weaker conviction among traders.
<figure><img src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2025-09/019932e0-2de4-7f37-9149-942bbc09bbd9" title="" alt="ETH price to $3.5K first? Why Ethereum bears are growing louder">
 <figcaption style="text-align: center;">ETH: Spot volume. Source: Glassnode
 </figcaption>
</figure>
While spot Cumulative Volume Delta (CVD), the net difference between buying and selling trade volumes for ETH, has improved slightly, as selling pressure eased. However, it is still way below the levels seen in late August.&nbsp;&nbsp;
<figure><img src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2025-09/019932e0-373c-7bba-9bf6-453ae051606e" title="" alt="ETH price to $3.5K first? Why Ethereum bears are growing louder">
 <figcaption style="text-align: center;">ETH: Spot volume delta. Source: Glassnode
 </figcaption>
</figure>
Low spot volume and negative spot volume delta indicate weak ETH demand, increasing price vulnerability. However, the bulls could regain their footing if the CVD stabilizes.
As Cointelegraph <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/spot-ether-etfs-bleed-1b-amid-macro-uncertainty" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">reported</a>, institutional investors have taken a step back, with spot Ethereum ETFs recording over $1.04 billion in net outflows across six consecutive trading days, adding to the sell-side pressure.&nbsp;
<h2 id="how-low-can-eth-price-go">How low can ETH price go?</h2>
ETH price is currently retesting the lower trendline of a <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/learn/articles/crypto-charts-101-how-to-read-cryptocurrency-charts" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">symmetrical triangle</a> at $4,280 in the daily time frame, data from <a href="https://subscription.cointelegraph.com/?_gl=1*7499wx*_ga*MTQ0MzQ0NzI4Ny4xNzE2MzY1NTA0*_ga_53R24TEEB1*MTcxNjM2NTUwNC4xLjEuMTcxNjM2Njg2MC4wLjAuMA.." rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Cointelegraph Markets Pro</a> and <a href="https://www.tradingview.com/symbols/BTCUSD/?exchange=BINANCE" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">TradingView</a> shows.&nbsp;
A daily candlestick close below the triangle could attract more bears that will look to push the price down to $3,600, or down 16% from the current level. 
<figure><img src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2025-09/019932e0-3bae-75d7-b2d7-de352cc1aa3f" title="" alt="ETH price to $3.5K first? Why Ethereum bears are growing louder">
 <figcaption style="text-align: center;">ETH/USF daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/<a href="https://www.tradingview.com/x/dGh11uzD/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">TradingView</a>
 </figcaption>
</figure>
MN Capital founder Michael van de Poppe <a href="https://x.com/CryptoMichNL/status/1964273872976355356" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">says</a> that ETH price could drop toward the $3,500-$3,800 demand zone before recovering.
<blockquote>
 “One leg down for $ETH, tapping the green zone and up only from there. That would be my ideal scenario.”&nbsp;
</blockquote>
<figure><img src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2025-09/019932e0-3f61-7f95-8871-15438d1122b4" title="" alt="ETH price to $3.5K first? Why Ethereum bears are growing louder">
 <figcaption style="text-align: center;">ETH/USD daily chart. Source: Michael van de Poppe
 </figcaption>
</figure>
Fellow analyst Ted Pillows spotted large liquidity clusters sitting between $3,600 and $4,000 and said that Ether may first drop to collect this liquidity, before a reversal.
<blockquote>
 “It looks like a sweep of lower liquidity could happen before reversal.”
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
 <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%24ETH&amp;src=ctag&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">$ETH</a> has decent liquidity clusters around the $3,600-$4,000 level. Ethereum price action is also looking weak due to macro uncertainty and weak ETF demand. It looks like a sweep of lower liquidity could happen before reversal. <a href="https://t.co/9Md1S5kP77" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">pic.twitter.com/9Md1S5kP77</a>— Ted (@TedPillows) <a href="https://twitter.com/TedPillows/status/1965499197177708565?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">September 9, 2025</a>
</blockquote>
As Cointelegraph <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/price-predictions-9-8-spx-dxy-btc-eth-xrp-bnb-sol-doge-ada-hype" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">reported</a>, another potential area to watch for a rebound is $3,745 if the support at $4,000 is lost.
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.

ETH price to $3.5K first? Why Ethereum bears are growing louder

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