ETH on track to close the best September since 2016

Ethereum (ETH) is on track to close September in the green, with a net gain of up to 9.76%. The final gain is still undecided, but ETH keeps showing bullish signals. 

ETH traded at $2,712.51 as of September 29, extending the month’s gains. Based on the running net gains, ETH is on track to close the best September since 2016, when it gained 13.3% for the month. 

The September curse for ETH meant the token usually lost 8.57% on average, while often incurring deep losses for the month or minimal gains. This September, ETH broke through several milestones, potentially signaling a more bullish future. 

The climb above $2,700 broke the previous chart’s bearish structures. ETH also retained its position at 0.032 BTC, achieving a faster recovery compared to the leading coin. 

ETH took months to shake off the damage of the October 10, 2025 liquidation event. Nearly a year later, ETH looks more hopeful, though traders are cautious about announcing a full bull market. As Cryptopolitan reported, ETH is closely watched for its capability of breaking above $5,000.

ETH open interest is back at over $18B, while spot demand has depleted exchange reserves, setting up the stage for another breakout to a higher price range. For now, ETH sentiment remains neutral at 55 points, down from greed levels in the past week. 

ETH achieves the highest open interest on Hyperliquid

During the latest ETH rally, Hyperliquid open interest played a bigger role in trading dynamics. The ETH market looks more dynamic, leading to an event where open interest flipped BTC positions. 

Open interest for ETH rose by 2.46% on Hyperliquid, accelerating faster than BTC positions. Open interest for ETH broke above $3B, with $1.2B in trading volumes. BTC still trades with over $2.2B in daily volumes. 

Hyperliquid whales are also bullish, with over 65% taking up long positions. For other markets on average, long open interest is at 57% of all positions. 

For now, the biggest ETH position on Hyperliquid is short, with a notional value of $283M. The position brings its owner $2.6M in funding fees, as funding rates remain positive. 

On Hyperliquid, ETH liquidity is also cleanly separated, with long positions going down to $2,500, while short liquidity is available as high as $2,900. 

The Wintermute market maker has also prepared for active trading, deploying $126M in short positions, with $46.92M in ETH short open interest. The position is carrying unrealized gains, as well as $402K in funding fees. 

Whales return for spot ETH

Spot demand is also showing renewed strength. ETH remains a utility token, with value for staking, DeFi and other use cases. 

One anonymous whale accumulated $31M in ETH from OKX and Binance, held in a self-custodied address. As a whole, accumulation addresses continued to expand even faster in September, now holding over 23M ETH. Despite setbacks, ETH ownership never faced a capitulation, showing long-term confidence. 

A total of 35.72% of the ETH supply is now staked, for over 43M ETH. Recently, Sharplinkg Gaming staked 42,072 ETH as staking has become one of the main targets for treasury companies. Treasuries now hold a total of 8.49M ETH, of which a large part is sent for staking. Bitmine now holds over 6M ETH, planning to stake most of the coins. 

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