A mysterious institution bought nearly $1B in Ethereum in a week, pushing its market cap past Mastercard as $20K forecasts emerge.
Ethereum has seen a wave of large-scale buying activity over the past week. In particular, one unidentified institution purchased a staggering 221,166 ETH worth nearly $1 billion earlier in the week.
The aggressive buying spree came alongside a 21% rally in ETH’s price, which pushed it above the $4,000 mark.
Ethereum Market Cap beats Mastercard’s
According to data from Lookonchain, the whale entity used six separate wallets to store its holdings. The largest wallet contains $181 million in ETH, while the smallest holds $128 million. These funds were also acquired through Galaxy Digital, FalconX, and BitGo.
In particular, on-chain data shows that Ethereum addresses holding more than 10,000 ETH reached 868,886 on Saturday, which is the highest level in a year, according to Glassnode. This rise in large holders indicates that institutional interest in Ethereum is massively on the rise.
This mysterious institution accumulated another 49,533 $ETH($212M) today.
Over the past week, they have accumulated 221,166 $ETH($946.6M) from #FalconX, #GalaxyDigital, and #BitGo.https://t.co/k99BomKVq5 pic.twitter.com/u3j2LJ9M1H
— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) August 11, 2025
As a result, the price growth has pushed Ethereum’s market cap to around $523 billion, which is more than Mastercard’s $519 billion valuation according to CompaniesMarketCap.
Public companies have also been adding massive amounts of ETH to their treasuries. Over the past week alone, more than 304,000 ETH worth $1.3 billion has been accumulated by publicly traded firms, according to CoinGecko.
BitMine Immersion Technologies led the charge with a purchase of over 208,000 ETH, which is worth more than $900 million. SharpLink Gaming followed with a $303 million purchase.
Analysts Turn Bullish on Ethereum Price Outlook
Technical analysts have become increasingly optimistic about Ethereum. For example, Analyst Nilesh Verma predicts that ETH could hit $20,000 within six to eight months.
Another analyst, Merlijn The Trader, believes that ETH can break above the $20,000 mark and may even go higher, depending on market conditions.
7 years in the making. 2 touches. One breakout that changes everything.$ETH is riding the same channel that launched it from $100 to $4,000.
Momentum is coiling. RSI is reset. The ignition sequence is armed.
Next stop? Straight to the top of the channel and beyond. pic.twitter.com/bwiVfcv9Rh
— Merlijn The Trader (@MerlijnTrader) August 9, 2025
Despite Ethereum’s strong price performance, derivatives market data indicate that traders are not overly bullish yet. ETH has gained 41% over the past month, and is now outperforming the general market’s 9% rise.
Additionally, ETH futures are currently trading with an annualised premium below the typical bullish range of 5% to 10%. This means that traders are not heavily betting on further price increases in the short term.
Institutional Demand Provides Support
Institutional activity continues to be a major foundation for Ethereum’s price. For example, between Thursday and Friday alone, spot Ethereum ETFs attracted $683 million in net inflows last week.
Corporate holdings are also growing. BitMine Immersion recently added 317,126 ETH to its reserves, which were worth $1.35 billion. SharpLink Gaming has raised nearly $900 million to expand its ETH reserves and now holds around 600,000 ETH worth $2.55 billion.
This institutional interest could help Ethereum maintain its standing above $4,000 and even drive it toward the $5,000 level.