According to Cointelegraph, Ethereum is experiencing heightened fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD) as Solana (SOL) gains traction. The price of ETH in terms of BTC has dropped to its lowest level in three and a half years. This widening gap between Bitcoin and Ether (ETH) is attributed to bearish sentiment and the rise of competing blockchains like Solana (SOL).
Over the past week, SOL has surged by approximately 17%, while ETH has remained mostly stagnant. Some observers interpret this as a rotation out of ETH. On October 24, Cointelegraph reported that Solana has increased by about 600% against Ethereum since 2023, driven primarily by memecoin mania. This rise has sparked discussions about Solana potentially surpassing Ethereum’s market capitalization. However, Ethereum's market cap stands at over $300 million, while Solana's is just $82 million, according to CoinGecko.
The ETH/BTC ratio has fallen to its lowest level since April 2021, reaching 0.037 on October 24, as Ether prices continued to decline while Bitcoin recovered. ETH has dropped around 9% since its two-month high of $2,760 on October 21, falling below $2,500 on October 24. Meanwhile, Bitcoin has recovered almost all its losses during the week, reaching $68,820 in late trading on October 24, according to CoinGecko.
Ethereum developers and advocates have defended the blockchain, with core developer Eric Connor dismissing criticism about layer-2 user experiences, fragmented liquidity, and development speed. Connor argued that Ethereum remains the leading smart contract platform committed to true decentralization, with significant institutional adoption and developer activity. He stated, “I’ve always said Ethereum is a multi-decade play but it’s still on the right path to being the true winner.”
Independent trader Bob Loukas acknowledged his criticism of Ethereum, stating that the current situation reflects a repricing of economic activity and the use of layer-2 chains. Ethereum educator Anthony Sassano commented that most of the FUD appears to be related to ETH’s underperformance, noting that sentiment is driven by price. Founder of Solana developer tools firm Helius, Mert Mumtaz, reiterated his support for the Ethereum ecosystem in a post on October 25.
