Ethereum traded over $1,000 to reach maximum in three years

Ether (ETH) reached a three year high a few hours ago when it passed the $800 mark trading over $1,000 in cryptomorphic purses

Bitcoin (BTC) is currently capturing most of the attention in the world of crypto, while continuing in its record bull race. The leading digital currency reached a new all-time high (ATH) during the week after passing the $30,000 mark to reach $34,000 – its highest level since the first BTC was extracted on January 3, 2009.

However, while Bitcoin is setting new ATHs every few days, other altcoins have not been left behind.

The blockchain Ethereum’s native Crypto Engine and the second largest cryptomote in market capitalization, passed the $800 mark over the weekend to trade at $1,000. This is the first time Ether has reached the $1,000 mark since January 2018.

The rise to $1,000 pushed Ether’s market capitalization to $116 billion, losing only to Bitcoin. Its market capitalization is almost $100 billion higher than that of Tether (USDT), which replaced XRP as the third largest cryptomoeda in market value.

Ether’s rally coincides with growing institutional interest in cryptomeda. Recent data show that 39 new whale accounts with 10,000 or more ether have been added in the last two months. The entry of whales may signal a growing demand for ETH.

Last month, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) announced it would launch a future contract on ether. WEC-Futures on ETH will start on February 8 and each contract will consist of 50 units of Ether.

Market analysts believe that WEC’s entry into the Ethereum market shows that institutional demand is expanding to other leading altcoins.

Although Bitcoin experienced an electrical start in 2021, Ether’s performance in the last 24 hours outperformed that of the leading cryptomeda. The ETH has increased 33% in the last 24 hours, while the BTC rally has slowed, and is currently 2% below.

The price increase for Ether has not been as dramatic as Bitcoin. It broke $600 for the first time since May 2018 in November 2020. Ether hit the $700 mark the following month and had to wait until the weekend to reach $800. The second largest cryptomeda then went from $800 and $900 the same morning and kept its price above $1,000 in the last few hours.