Ethereum rallies 5% as Vitalik Buterin responds to criticism from community amid Coinbase ETH ETF prediction

• Coinbase analysts expressed confidence that spot ETH ETFs would be approved.
• Vitalik Buterin has responded to criticisms labeled at Ethereum developers, stating how they have been addressing some of the concerns of community members.
• Ethereum could see a further rise as it outperforms Bitcoin for the first time in May.

Ethereum (ETH) saw a quick rally on Friday, posting a 5% gain as its co-founder, Vitalik Buterin, responded to recent criticisms from the crypto community. Coinbase analysts have also expressed confidence that spot ETH ETFs would debut in the market soon. 

Read more: Ethereum drops below $3,000 again, spot ETH ETF sparks debate in crypto community

Daily digest market movers: Processing speed, Buterin's response

Coinbase analysts have said that spot Ethereum ETFs would debut in the market despite the silence from the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) towards issuers. "As crypto begins to take form as an election issue, it’s also less certain in our view that the SEC would be willing to front the political capital necessary to support a denial," said Coinbase analyst David Han.

He added that if the first deadline on May 23 sees a rejection from the SEC, "there’s a high likelihood that litigation could reverse that decision."

Meanwhile, following Ethereum's slow price growth compared to Bitcoin and Solana, many crypto community members on X have targeted core Ethereum developers through a series of criticisms.

Many criticized Ethereum's "acceptance of MEV" after the Department of Justice arrested two brothers for an MEV-related exploit on the number one smart contract blockchain. Others complained that Ethereum folks need to post more about the protocol and its updates.

Read more: US Department of Justice charges brothers for alleged 12-second MEV fraud

One X user, @chainyoda, shared his plight:

More importantly, Geth core developer Peter Szilagyi expressed dissatisfaction with the several upgrades the Ethereum network has undergone in a short while. "My criticism is that you (Ethereum developers have) [...] have abandoned due process and rushed to hotfix things."

The increased concerns sparked a series of posts from several Ethereum core contributors, including Josh Stark, Tim Beiko, Dankrad Feist and Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin.

Buterin gave a detailed response to these criticisms in a blog post, stating that the concerns raised by community members are valid and "are already being addressed by protocol features that are already in-progress."

He also stated that several other concerns from the community can be "addressed by very realistic tweaks to the current roadmap." Buterin addressed three major areas that he believes form the majority of the concerns raised:

• MEV and builder dependence
• Liquid staking
• Hardware requirement of nodes

He discussed how Verkle trees, EIP-4444, robust solo staking, and a peer-pressuring development process for MEV reduction can solve these issues.

"There is a near-unlimited number of blockchain projects aiming for the niche of ‘we can be super-fast, we'll think about decentralization later.’ I don't think Ethereum should be one of those projects," said Buterin.

"We should have deep respect for the properties that make Ethereum unique, and continue to work to maintain and improve on those properties as Ethereum scales," he added.

ETH technical analysis: Ethereum could attempt to break $3,251 resistance

Ethereum posted a 5% gain on Friday after it broke the $3,103 resistance. The rise follows a general appreciation of assets in the crypto market. However, Ethereum notably outperformed Bitcoin in the past 24 hours after several community members highlighted the ETH/BTC ratio was nearing a bottom.

Also read: Ethereum shows slight bullish signs, SEC faces several hurdles in attempts to deny spot Ethereum ETFs

As a result, ETH short liquidations are outpacing longs for the first time. With a total liquidation of $24.5 million in the past 24 hours, short liquidations sit at $17.54 million compared to $6.76 million long liquidations, according to data from Coinglass.

The recent ETH rise has also caused a spike in ETH open interest, which increased by 6.6% in the past 24 hours. This signifies renewed investor interest in ETH, meaning it may see less sideways movement in the coming days.

ETH/USDT 4-hour chart

If renewed confidence prevails, ETH could attempt to break the $3,161 resistance and, if successful, move past the $3,251 mark. However, it's important to watch out for volatility in the days leading up to the SEC's decision on spot ETH ETFs on May 23.

 

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