As Ethereum (CCC:ETH-USD) blew past the $3,000 price, cryptocurrency investors are asking: How far can it go? And while they ponder new highs, at least one analyst sees ETH touching the $10,000 level by the end of 2021.
What’s got folks excited are big plans for the Ethereum 2.0 blockchain in the works.
The value of ETH has appreciated 8.46% in the last 24 hours, extending a seven-day gain of almost 27% and taking the market capitalization of the coin to $366.2 billion, according to CoinMarketCap data.
Bitcoin (CCC:BTC-USD) has seen a 9.55% boost in the same one-week period. The total market capitalization for decentralization finance (DeFi) recently topped $100 billion, with some of the most popular DeFi projects being built on the Ethereum blockchain.
Ethereum Price Predictions: ETH Gains on Blockchain Upgrade
The move past the $3,000 mark follows an upgrade of the underlying Ethereum blockchain from the current proof-of-work consensus process to a proof-of-stake. Founder Vitalik Buterin recently outlined the transition, revealing plans for a so-called sharding feature.
Sharding will expand Ethereum’s capacity to process transactions by splitting its database into 64 new mini-blockchains, thus addressing the congestion issues that currently plague it.
It was that news — on a long-expected feature — that prompted FundStrat analysts to posit that ETH-USD could top the $10,000 level by the end of 2021. “The crypto narrative is shifting from bitcoin to ethereum and other segments like DeFi (decentralized finance) and Web 3.0 apps,” David Grider, lead digital asset strategist, wrote in his April 29 Weekly Crypto Briefing.
That Ethereum price prediction prompted InvestorPlace contributor Chris MacDonald the next day to remind readers of his long-held position that “for investors considering Bitcoin alternative, Ethereum remains the gold standard for such options.”
On the date of publication, Robert Lakin did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.
InvestorPlace contributor Robert Lakin is a veteran financial writer and editor, including stints with Bloomberg News and as a sell-side equities research editor.
