Ethereum (ETH) Underperforms All Top 5 Major Cryptos in Brutal 2025 Downtrend

Ethereum (ETH) is under pressure as it attempts to recover from one of its worst-performing years among major cryptocurrencies, down nearly 50% in 2025. Despite signs of improving momentum, with RSI climbing and EMA lines hinting at a potential breakout, ETH continues to lag behind competitors like Solana in multiple metrics.

The ETH/BTC ratio has plunged to multi-year lows amid heavy institutional sell-offs. As ETH approaches key resistance, the market remains divided, with bulls eyeing a breakout and skeptics questioning the chain’s long-term relevance.

Ethereum Becomes 2025’s Worst Performer Among Top 5 Cryptos

Ethereum is currently the worst-performing major crypto asset in 2025, with its price down nearly 51% year-to-date, significantly underperforming Bitcoin (-5 %), Solana (-25.5 %), BNB (-13.5 %), and even XRP, which is up 1%.

This steep underperformance has sparked growing concerns about Ethereum’s future, especially as alternative chains like Solana and Base continue to gain momentum.

Solana is now leading the sector in key on-chain metrics such as DEX volume, apps revenue, and user activity, while Base is quickly capturing developer interest.

As these competitors rise, Ethereum’s dominance is being increasingly challenged across both narrative and usage, with some analysts even suggesting that XRP’s market cap could soon surpass Ethereum’s.

Biggest Cryptos Performance in 2025. Source: Messari.

The ETH/BTC ratio has collapsed to 0.01791 — its lowest point since 2020 — highlighting the scale of Ethereum’s decline relative to Bitcoin.

This drop has been accelerated by major sell-offs from institutions, including Galaxy Digital, which offloaded over $100 million in ETH in just one week. The Ethereum Foundation and Paradigm have also made large-scale transfers, contributing to investor unease. Additionally, Solana recently surpassed Ethereum in Staking Market Cap.

Compounding the issue are Ethereum’s low staking rates and Bitcoin’s growing dominance, both of which are shifting market sentiment and capital away from ETH.

As a result, Ethereum’s position as the leading smart contract platform is being questioned more seriously than ever before.

Ethereum Shows Signs of Recovery, But Momentum Remains Capped

Ethereum’s Relative Strength Index (RSI) has climbed to 57.26, up from 42.43 just a day ago, signaling a notable uptick in short-term momentum.

The RSI is a technical indicator that measures the speed and magnitude of recent price changes to evaluate whether an asset is overbought or oversold. It ranges from 0 to 100, with values above 70 typically indicating overbought conditions and values below 30 pointing to oversold levels.

Readings between 50 and 70 usually suggest moderate bullish momentum, while those between 30 and 50 lean bearish or neutral.

ETH RSI. Source: TradingView.

With ETH’s RSI now at 57.26, the asset is in bullish-neutral territory. It shows improving momentum but is not yet strong enough to indicate overheating.

Importantly, Ethereum hasn’t seen an RSI reading above 70 since March 24 — nearly a month ago — which signals that despite the recent bounce, it hasn’t entered overbought territory or shown signs of a sustained breakout.

This suggests cautious optimism: while buyers are regaining control, Ethereum still lacks the aggressive momentum that typically drives significant price rallies. If the RSI continues to rise and breaks above 70, it could point to stronger bullish sentiment returning.

Ethereum Battles Resistance as Market Questions Its Future

Ethereum’s EMA lines are starting to show signs of a potential bullish reversal. The price is now approaching a key resistance level at $1,669. If that level breaks, Ethereum price could target $1,749 next.

With strong momentum, it may even reach $1,954 — its first time above $1,900 since April 2. Short-term EMAs are moving closer to longer-term ones, a setup that supports this bullish outlook. Rising trading volume would further strengthen the case.

A successful breakout could help restore some investor confidence amid a challenging year for ETH.

ETH Price Analysis. Source: TradingView.

However, skepticism around Ethereum’s long-term positioning continues to grow within the crypto community, particularly as rival chains gain traction.

If ETH fails to maintain upward momentum, it could retest the $1,535 support zone. A breakdown below that level would shift the structure back to bearish, opening downside targets at $1,412 and potentially $1,385.

In that scenario, Ethereum’s inability to reclaim key levels could further fuel doubts about its competitive edge, especially in light of rising activity on faster and cheaper alternatives.