Ether falls twice as hard as Bitcoin as Asian chip selloff drags crypto lower
In brief
- Ether fell 4% to $1,850; Bitcoin down 2% to $63,400 after failing twice at $65,000
- Japan's Nikkei 225 slumped 5% in worst session since March; MSCI Asia Pacific dropped 3%
- Ether remains up 4% on the week and is the only major cryptocurrency still green
- HYPE token fell 10% on the day and 12% on the week amid semiconductor selloff
- Wintermute's OTC desk sees consolidation under resistance; onchain metrics have yet to confirm reversal
Chip trade unwinds, dragging crypto down
Japan's Nikkei 225 slumped 5% in its worst session since March. MSCI's Asia Pacific equities gauge dropped 3%, heading for its lowest close in two months. Taiwan Semiconductor was on track for its biggest one-day decline since April 2025, while Japan's Kioxia sank as much as 16%.
The semiconductor rout rippled into crypto markets. Ether's 4% decline outpaced Bitcoin's 2% drop, suggesting investors viewed the Ethereum ecosystem as more exposed to the chip trade. HYPE fell 10% on the day and 12% on the week, the steepest loss among major tokens.
Other large-cap names also posted losses. Solana slid 2% to $75 and is off 5% for the week. XRP eased 2% to $1.09, BNB fell 2% to $571, and Dogecoin lost 2%.
Ether holds ground despite the week's volatility
Yet Ether's resilience on a weekly basis stands out. The token remains up 4% over seven sessions and is the only major cryptocurrency still green on the week. That strength came despite early-week headwinds. U.S. spot ether ETFs took in nearly $97 million over the first three days of this week, with BlackRock's funds accounting for almost all of it.
Traders see caution ahead. Wintermute's OTC desk described the week as "consolidation under resistance rather than continuation," noting that spot volumes fell rather than rose into the highs. Glassnode's onchain metrics have yet to confirm a reversal. The Fear and Greed Index at 25 remains in extreme fear.
"Wintermute's OTC desk described the week as "consolidation under resistance rather than continuation," noting in an email that spot volumes fell rather than rose into the highs." — Wintermute OTC desk
Broader market backdrop: oil rallies, AI questions emerge
Brent crude rebounded to about $85 a barrel and is up 12% on the week, its biggest weekly gain since April. Escalating hostilities and shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz thinned as the U.S. conducted strikes on Iran for the fifth consecutive day.
Investors are questioning whether this year's AI rally moved too far too fast. Spot trading volumes climbed 15.3% to $1.11 trillion in June, with RWA perpetual volumes surging to a record $311 billion in June. The question now is whether that momentum can sustain.
