Ether (ETH), Ethereum’s native token, has recently captured the attention of investors due to its significant price increase. Particularly in derivative markets, trading volumes have seen a notable rise. Over the past 24 hours, more than $5 million has been invested in options on Deribit with a strike price of $5,000, set to expire at the end of September. This indicates that some investors anticipate a new peak for ether by the end of the quarter.
Increasing Activity in the Options Market
In the options market, investors aren’t limiting themselves to just $5,000; they’ve also purchased call options and various strategies at $5,500 and $6,000 levels. Additionally, the OTC technology platform Paradigm shared that a market participant showed interest in an option expiring in December with a strike price of $7,500.
According to analysts, ether has further upward potential as it has underperformed compared to Bitcoin 
$77,287 and XRP in the current cycle. Greg Magadini, Director of Derivatives at Amberdata, stated in his weekly note that despite low sentiment and general aversion among investors, ETH may still have considerable room for recovery. Target levels are projected at $5,000 for a new all-time high and approximately $7,200 when considering the ETH/BTC parity at 0.06 and BTC at around $120,000.
Contrary Market Trends for Retail Investors
Blockchain analytics company Santiment reports that ether’s price increase happened while small investors continued to sell. They highlighted on the X platform that historically, prices tend to move contrary to retail investors’ expectations. Excessive optimism was noted on June 16 and July 30, 2025, which led to corrections, yet recent investor uncertainty hasn’t halted the price rise.
Santiment also emphasized that major players are increasing their positions by accumulating ether that retail investors are willing to sell. They remarked, “Key players are collecting ethers easily released by small investors. This trend supports price increases without resistance and suggests a likely surpassing of historical levels soon.”
Approaching All-Time High
The price of Ethereum 
$2,520 is currently just 4.4% shy of its November 2021 peak of $4,861. Meanwhile, Bitcoin surpassed its 2021 peak with a rapid value increase by March 2023. Throughout that period, ether has fluctuated within a narrow range of $2,000 to $4,000.
Assessing market dynamics, the recent price movements of ether have led to shifts in both institutional and individual investor sentiment. However, large investors are perceived to be capitalizing on the current market environment.
