Samson Mow, a well-known Bitcoin entrepreneur and founder/CEO of JAN3, warned that recent gains in Ether could be short lived as some investors move profits back into Bitcoin.
According to his post, many ETH buyers already hold Bitcoin — often from ICOs or insider positions — and are rotating that BTC into ETH to drive prices up.
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He argued that once Ether reaches a high enough level, those same holders may sell, leaving a fresh set of buyers holding the bag.
“No one wants ETH in the long run,” he wrote, and he called the selling pressure near big price marks a “Bagholder’s Dilemma.”
ETH/BTC Moves Raise Questions
Based on reports, the ETH/BTC ratio has jumped to about 0.036 on TradingView, up from a five-and-a-half-year low of 0.018 in April.
That rise has come while Ether surged in price; the token topped $4,310 in late trading on Sunday and posted a weekly gain of 21%.
Let me explain what’s happening with ETHBTC.
Most ETH holders have a lot of BTC (ICO/insiders) and they are rotating that BTC into ETH to pump it on new narratives (Ethereum Treasury co’s).
Once they’ve gotten it high enough, they’ll dump their ETH, creating new generational…
— Samson Mow (@Excellion) August 10, 2025
Those numbers put Ether roughly 10% from its 2021 all-time high of $4,880. For proponents of Bitcoin, those shifts look like a rotation back to altcoins that could reverse once sellers take profits.
Some market watchers read the same facts differently. They see the recent ETH surge as a bullish sign and expect a more complex cycle: Ether could hit a fresh peak and spark a mini altseason.
After that, capital may flow back into Bitcoin until BTC reaches about $140,000, before rotating again into Ether and other altcoins — a back-and-forth that has played out in past bull runs and makes a neat, one-way trade unlikely.
Flows, Use Cases And On-Chain Signals
Reports have disclosed that institutional interest and new strategies are also part of the story. Nick Ruck, director at LVRG Research, pointed to institutional demand and “strategy reserve plays” as drivers behind Ether’s climb to $4,300.
According to Ruk, higher interest has helped DeFi platforms lift total value locked. Staking, yield tactics and burning of fees change supply dynamics compared with earlier cycles, and those factors make today’s rally different from the ICO-era rotations Mow described.
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Technical signals add another layer. Ether’s weekly candle closed at levels not seen since November 2021, which gives momentum traders something to watch.
At the same time, Bitcoin dominance has slid by about 10% since late June, showing capital has already shifted into altcoins in recent weeks.
Those two trends can coexist — strong ETH momentum plus a still-present risk that profit-taking will trigger a reversal.
Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
