Ethereum Sees Investor Exodus as On-Chain Data Signals Shift

Ethereum was close to breaching the key $3,000 level amid rising investor interest. But this momentum was abruptly halted when geopolitical tensions flared up late on Thursday, June 13. The trigger: Israel’s airstrike on Iran, which quickly rattled global markets. The crypto sector wasn’t spared—Ethereum’s value tumbled around 6% in the last 24 hours.

In a recent post on CryptoQuant, on-chain analyst Amr Taha highlighted the impact of the geopolitical shock on Ethereum and Bitcoin. He pointed out a sharp 19% drop in Ethereum’s Open Interest (OI) on Binance over the past day—a metric that tracks the total capital tied up in ETH derivative contracts. A dip in OI is often seen as bearish, indicating lower investor confidence.

Taha suggested this decline was likely due to widespread panic selling, with many traders quickly closing long positions—either manually or through automated liquidations triggered by stop-losses.

At the same time, Bitcoin saw a notable outflow of 7,000 BTC from Coinbase, the largest U.S.-based exchange. Taha interpreted this movement as a sign that major investors might be shifting funds away from Ethereum and back into Bitcoin, potentially accumulating BTC at lower prices.

ETH trades at roughly $2,546, marking a 4% decline in the last 24 hours. This pattern indicates a possible capital rotation toward Bitcoin, raising concerns about Ethereum’s short-term outlook.