ETH Traders Hold $20.8 Billion Positions as Vitalik Buterin Plans to Fix Ethereum in 5 Years

Ethereum price remains steady around $1,837 as Vitalik Buterin’s new proposal fuels optimism for Ethereum’s long-term simplification.

Ethereum (ETH) Deadlocked Below $1,900 as Market Recovery Stalls

Ethereum price is currently consolidating at $1,837, down slightly from its recent 24-hour high of $1,847, according to CoinGecko. Despite a 1.7% uptick on the weekly chart and a monthly gain of 2.8%, ETH has struggled to break above the critical $1,900 level.

The broader crypto market has also entered a temporary pullback phase after a high-profile event in the U.S. state of Arizona.

On Saturday, Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs vetoed a key piece of legislation that would have allowed the state to hold Bitcoin in its strategic reserves, a bill that had already passed the legislature.

The political setback triggered a short-term confidence dip, stalling Bitcoin’s rally and dragging Ethereum down with it. As Bitcoin price retraced from $98,000 to $96,200, Ethereum mirrored the move, slipping into a modest correction.

Despite reduced weekend trading volumes, Ethereum is still showing signs of active buying pressure, supported by short-term traders’ confidence.

Ethereum derivatives data show that Open Interest stands at $20.87 billion (-0.57%) while total trading volume dropped 29.8% to $28 billion.

The ETH futures trading volume decline being larger than the Open interest dip on Saturday indicates that majority of investors are abstaining rather than close out their ETH positions.

Bulls Hold Tight After Vitalik’s Latest Update

In a move that could reshape Ethereum’s future, Vitalik Buterin has published a new five-year roadmap titled “Simplifying the L1.” The proposal outlines a path to radically reduce Ethereum’s base-layer complexity, aligning it more closely with Bitcoin’s minimalist architecture.

According to Buterin, Ethereum’s core protocol has become bloated with over 300,000 lines of code, compared to Bitcoin’s 15,000.

While this expansion enabled a wide range of dApps and smart contracts, it has also introduced severe security and maintainability concerns.

The infamous DAO hack of 2016, where $50 million in ETH was drained, serves as a stark reminder of such vulnerabilities.

To address this, Buterin suggests implementing a maximum code line limit for Ethereum’s core. This change would reduce the surface area for attacks, make audits simpler, and improve overall protocol resilience.

“Simplicity, like decentralization, is upstream of resilience,” Vitalik Buterin wrote, urging the community to take the long-term view.

While the ETH price may not react immediately to these structural changes, market sentiment around Ethereum’s long-term viability has visibly improved.

The long/short ratio on Binance ETH/USDT shows 2.52:1 for top traders’ accounts, a bullish indicator that suggests whales are already predominantly betting on Ethereum price upside for the coming sessions.

Ethereum Price Forecast: ETH Eyes $1,950 as Compression Builds Near Key Resistance

Ethereum price forecast today reflects a market steadily coiling beneath resistance at $1,873.17, with technical signals aligning for a potential breakout toward $1,950. Price action has maintained higher lows through late April into early May, revealing steady accumulation under resistance.

The Donchian Channel indicator also shows ETH price pressing its upper boundary, a classic setup for a volatility expansion.

Despite the mild pullback to $1,835.30 on Saturday, Ethereum bullish momentum remains intact, and the mid-channel support at $1,705.22 stands as the nearest downside checkpoint.

The Choppiness Index reading at 47.86 confirms a sideways, coiling price structure—neither fully directional nor overly consolidated.

Should Ethereum close decisively above the $1,873 ceiling with elevated volume, momentum would likely carry ETH toward $1,950 in the near term.

In contrast, a breakdown below $1,800 would weaken bullish conviction and expose $1,705.22 as a possible retracement zone.