Ethereum has faced significant selling pressure on February 28, 2025, declining by 4% to reach $2,217. This drop is amid increasing volatility in the crypto market, driven by multiple factors including macroeconomic uncertainty and the aftermath of the Bybit hacking incident. So, what are the key factors pushing Ethereum's price down today? Let's explore the full analysis.
On February 28, the price of Ethereum (ETH) was noted at approximately $2,217, marking a drop of 4.43% over the past 24 hours. During this period, ETH reached a peak of nearly $2,800 before correcting down to around $2,217. At the writing time, data from CoinMarketCap indicated Ethereum's market capitalization was around $267.75 billion, with daily trading volume declining by 13% to $25.47 billion within the last 24 hours.
How did this situation arise? According to FX Street (February 27, 2025), Ethereum encountered intense selling pressure this week after failing to maintain the psychological support level at $2,500, which triggered massive liquidation waves. On Thursday, ETH plummeted to $2,327, erasing recent gains and casting more bearish sentiment across the market. Now, ETH sits back down at $2,217.
This decline has been particularly influenced by the resolution of the Bybit hacking case, where suspects allegedly linked to North Korea’s Lazarus group stole over 400,000 ETH. Initially, Ethereum was holding above $2,800, with the crypto community debating various solutions and their impact on the market. Nevertheless, even as Bybit quickly responded to the incident by fully reimbursing customer funds and sending over 100,000 ETH to partner exchanges such as Binance and Bitget to provide emergency liquidity, market sentiment remained negative.
The situation became more complicated when Ethereum developers rejected the option for a rollback, leaving the resolution of the case under the jurisdiction of law enforcement. Reports indicate some of the stolen ETH has been laundered through Solana-based meme coins, raising concerns about the lengthy and complex process of recovering lost funds, which has put additional pressure on ETH prices.
On top of all this, macroeconomic factors contributed to Ethereum’s decline as well. On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced new tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico, heightening market concerns about rising inflation. The combined uncertainty from the Bybit hack and risk-off sentiment sparked by U.S. trade policies have emerged as two primary catalysts for Ethereum's sharp price drop.
With the U.S. tariffs set to take effect on March 1, 2025, investors have increasingly exhibited risk-off behavior, steering clear of riskier assets like Ethereum. Concerns continue to grow surrounding the impact of the hacked funds on market liquidity, as the stolen ETH remains active through various laundering schemes.
According to FX Street, traders on derivatives markets have capitalized on Ethereum’s downturn to profit. Data from Coinglass reports total liquidations within the last 24 hours have reached $124 million for Ethereum. Interestingly, long traders faced the largest losses, with long liquidations totaling $99.77 million, whereas short positions only lost $24.85 million. This suggests liquidation of long positions was nearly 75% greater than those of short positions, indicating bearish traders currently control the market.
This imbalance signals many long leveraged positions are trapped amid selling pressure, leading to forced sell-offs exacerbated the drop in ETH prices. With bearish sentiment dominating, short traders can continue to extend their advantage over coming days.
If ETH fails to reclaim the $2,500 level soon, selling pressure may intensify, with bears targeting lower support levels for greater profits from leveraged short positions. This is the latest information surrounding the cryptocurrency news today. For comprehensive insights about crypto, from beginner to expert levels, explore Pintu Academy and enrich your knowledge of the crypto and blockchain worlds.
Follow us on Google News for the latest updates on crypto and blockchain technology. Enjoy easy and safe crypto trading by downloading Pintu Crypto through Google Play Store or App Store now. Also, experience web trading with sophisticated trading tools such as pro charting, various order types, and portfolio trackers only on Pintu Pro. Click Register on Pintu if you do not have an account or click Login to Pintu if you are already registered.
*Disclaimer This content aims to enrich readers' information. Pintu gathers this information from various relevant sources and is unaffected by external parties. Note, past performance of assets does not determine future performance projections. The actions of buying and selling crypto carry high risks and volatility; always do your due diligence and use cold money before investing. Engaging in purchasing or selling bitcoin and other crypto assets is the reader's responsibility.