ETH Beats BTC for First Time in 2026

ETH Beats BTC for First Time in 2026 Is capital finally rotating to ETH?

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CMC AI Summary

$ETH is outperforming $BTC for the first time in 2026, and the data behind the move is striking. ETF flows tell part of the story — as Bibek Raj highlights, $ETH funds pulled in $187M last week, the best result since January, while $BTC ETFs bled $325M. On-chain signals add weight: Ekon notes daily active addresses hit 788K — near all-time highs — with 75% of $ETH supply unmoved in over a year. Whale wallets holding 100K+ $ETH jumped from 54 to 57 this week, as NextGen Crypto Tribe points out, while the $ETH/$BTC ratio hit its highest since January. But not everyone sees a true rotation forming. Dom argues this is a familiar pattern — a heavily shorted laggard catching a bid as positioning unwinds, not new capital making a long-term bet. Both ren crypto and web3 Llord share that caution, framing this as early-stage risk appetite expanding rather than a structural shift — $ETH tends to outperform mid-cycle, not at the start. CLORA adds that one instance of outperformance isn't enough; consistent leadership is needed before calling it rotation. With Glamsterdam targeting June and execution layer scaling on the horizon, the fundamental case has legs. But the debate remains — is $ETH finally repricing, or just reacting to a temporary shift in sentiment?

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