Ether Futures Briefly Outpace Bitcoin in Trading Volume

The air in the crypto markets felt different yesterday. Ether, the digital currency powering the Ethereum network, surged past the $3,000 mark. It was a notable climb, gaining more than eight percent in a single day.

• Ether’s price experienced a significant surge, surpassing $3,000 and gaining over eight percent in a single day. This indicated strong buying interest and market confidence.
• For a brief period, Ether’s futures trading volume exceeded Bitcoin’s, signaling growing interest and maturity in Ether beyond its spot price. This was a rare occurrence.
• The Ethereum Foundation announced plans to integrate zero-knowledge (ZK) proofs across the entire Ethereum system, aiming to enhance privacy, scalability, and efficiency.

This movement wasn’t just a gentle rise. It was a rocket launch. CoinDesk Research models showed Ether trading at $3,012. The broader CoinDesk 20 Index also saw a healthy bump, up over six percent.

Looking closer at the charts, the past 24 hours were quite a ride. From July 10 at 9:00 AM to July 11 at 8:00 AM, Ether climbed from $2,788.96 to $2,976.10. That’s a 7.10 percent gain, with a wide range of nearly $267.

The real fireworks happened on July 10 at 9:00 PM. Ether shot from $2,819.79 to $2,972.56. This move came on exceptional volume, nearly four times the daily average. It was a clear signal of strong buying interest.

Perhaps a few traders spilled their coffee watching that candle form. It was certainly a moment that grabbed attention.

A bit of resistance appeared around $3,027.83 early on July 11. Even with this, Ether held its ground. It consolidated above $2,950.00 for the rest of the period.

High-volume support formed near $2,818.00. This suggests big players are accumulating, hinting at more upside. It’s the kind of chart action that whispers of institutional confidence.

A Rare Flip in the Futures Market

But the price action, while exciting, wasn’t the only story. Something quite rare happened in the derivatives market. Glassnode, a respected blockchain analytics firm, pointed it out yesterday.

For a brief time, Ether’s 24-hour futures trading volume actually surpassed Bitcoin’s. Think about that for a moment. Bitcoin, the king of crypto, was momentarily out-traded by its younger sibling in the futures arena.

Glassnode reported that ETH futures hit $62.1 billion in daily volume. Bitcoin’s futures volume was $61.7 billion. It was a slim margin, but a symbolic one.

This kind of flip doesn’t happen often. It speaks to a growing maturity and interest in Ether beyond its spot price. It shows traders are betting big on its future.

Adding to this bullish sentiment was a significant nod from traditional finance. Fidelity, one of the world’s largest asset managers, released a research paper. It was titled “Blockchains as Emerging Economies.”

In this paper, Fidelity made a clear statement. They explained how “ether can serve as a medium of exchange and store of value.” This isn’t a small thing. When a financial titan like Fidelity speaks, people listen.

It lends a certain credibility to Ether that goes beyond the usual crypto chatter. It suggests that institutions are starting to see Ether not just as a speculative asset, but as something with fundamental economic utility. It’s a quiet endorsement that carries weight.

Ethereum’s Zero-Knowledge Horizon

Perhaps the most impactful news, though, came from the Ethereum Foundation itself. On Thursday, they published a blog post outlining ambitious plans. They aim to integrate zero-knowledge (ZK) proofs across the entire Ethereum system.

What exactly are zero-knowledge proofs? Imagine you have a secret, say, a specific number. You want to prove to someone that you know this number, but without actually telling them what the number is. That’s the essence of ZK proofs.

In the crypto world, ZK proofs allow one party to prove a transaction or computation is valid. The other party can verify this without needing all the underlying data. It’s a powerful tool for privacy and scaling. It helps the network handle more activity without getting bogged down.

The Foundation plans to start with a Layer 1 zkEVM. This means ZK proofs will be built right into the core of Ethereum. It’s a foundational change.

Initially, validators (the network participants who confirm transactions) will have a choice. They can pick clients that verify multiple offchain execution proofs. These proofs come from different zkVMs (zero-knowledge Virtual Machines). This is a change from the current method of re-executing every block.

This new setup uses Ethereum’s existing client diversity model. It adds security without requiring massive changes to the protocol. It also supports “pipelined execution” for the upcoming Glamsterdam upgrade. This upgrade aims to streamline how transactions are processed.

Adoption of these ZK clients will begin slowly. That’s natural. Trust in new technology builds over time. But the Foundation expects this trust to grow.

Once a majority of validators are confident in ZK proofs, big changes can happen. Ethereum could increase its “gas limit” (the maximum amount of computation allowed in a block). It could also shift to proof verification as the default. This would make the network faster and cheaper to use.

To make this shift possible, the Foundation is defining “realtime proving” standards. These are guidelines for zkVM developers. They include strict requirements for speed and security.

For instance, proofs must have a 10-second latency for 99 percent of blocks. The code needs to be open-source. Security must be at least 128-bit. Proofs should be small, under 300 KiB, and not require “trusted setups” (a specific, often complex, initial configuration).

They also set hardware limits. The cost should be under $100,000. Power use should be less than 10 kilowatts. This makes it feasible for individuals to run these proving operations from home.

It’s a step towards greater decentralization. While cloud proving is already affordable, the focus is clear. Ethereum wants to optimize for decentralized, at-home setups. This aligns with the network’s core values.

The Foundation anticipates continued innovation in this area. This will happen leading up to Devconnect Argentina. zkVMs are poised to become critical infrastructure for Ethereum’s long-term future. It’s a quiet revolution, building speed and efficiency into the very fabric of the network.