Ether enthusiasm outpaces Bitcoin due to Shanghai fork

Ethereum (ETH) is rapidly advancing against Bitcoin as speculation over the performance of both assets parallels a major network upgrade.

Over the past week, ETH has outperformed the leading crypto by a wide margin, rising 4% to $1,876, compared to a 1.9% move for BTC. This is the first time since last year that Ethereum has traded at such a high level.

The ETH/BTC ratio has been trending higher recently but remains in the middle of a multi-year consolidation range between around 0.053 BTC and 0.086 BTC dating back to 2021.

Ether investors, considered on the losing side of their initial trade, are now at 10-month lows, which could bode well for overall gains.

Digital assets remain steady in the United States amid unprecedented banking turmoil and inflationary volatility that threatens to tip the country into recession.

Mixed sentiments surrounding Ether’s new network

While the industry experienced a short-lived shift in the market for risk assets after the uncertainty surrounding Silicon Valley Bank, Signature, and Silvergate last month, sentiment remains divided about Ether as it promotes its new network.

Open interest in perpetual contracts on the Bitfinex exchange hit a four-month high of $131 million.

Traders and investors increased their exposure to ETH futures contracts, which could be interpreted as a boost to Shanghai’s bullish sentiment.

However, funding rates on major futures exchanges are roughly stable, indicating no significant funding challenges for either short or long positions.

During the existence of the Ethereum staking contract, from the inception of the Beacon Chain until today, the price of Ether has fluctuated between $600 and $4000.

Bitcoin shows signs of weakness in markets heading into the Easter long weekend. The world’s largest crypto fell 2% by market value in the last 24 hours to $27,800, despite hitting $28,800 earlier this week.