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Investing.com-- Bitcoin climbed on Wednesday, while Ether neared record highs as cryptocurrency markets rallied on mild U.S. consumer inflation data, which ramped up bets on a September interest rate cut.
Altcoin prices fared much better than Bitcoin on Tuesday and Wednesday, as improving risk appetite drove a wave of buying into more discounted assets, such as Ether, which had largely lagged Bitcoin’s stellar gains in recent months.
The world’s largest crypto rose 1.3% to $120,370 by 09:32 ET (13:32 GMT).
Ether near $4,800 record high amid increased corporate buying
World no.2 crypto Ether was a standout performer this week, rallying as high as $4,709.62 and coming within spitting distance of a $4,868.8 record high hit in November 2021.
The crypto was boosted chiefly by increased signs of corporate and institutional buying in recent weeks, as more corporate entities began purchasing the crypto in line with a strategy adopted by major Bitcoin holder MicroStrategy Incorporated (NASDAQ:MSTR).
Bitmine Immersion Technologies Inc (NYSE:BMNR), the world’s biggest corporate Ether holder, disclosed on Monday that it now held more than 1.15 million tokens valued at about $4.9 billion.
The company also recently said it plans to raise an unprecedented $24.5 billion through a stock offering aimed largely at buying more Ether.
180 Life Sciences Corp (NASDAQ:ATNF), which is rebranding itself as Ether treasury ETHZilla, recently saw a 7.5% stake acquisition by billionaire Peter Thiel.
Thiel disclosed the stake on Tuesday, sending the firm’s shares up more than threefold.
180 also disclosed that it holds about $349 million worth of Ether– 82,186 tokens which it acquired at an average purchase price of $3,806.71.
Crypto treasury Sharplink Gaming Ltd (NASDAQ:SBET) completed a $400 million capital raise this week, which it said will be dedicated towards buying more Ether.
Increasing corporate interest has been a major driver of Ether’s recent rally, helping the world no.2 crypto overtake Bitcoin in terms of year-to-date gains. Ether is trading up 39.4% so far in 2025, while Bitcoin is up 27.9%.
Ethereum price forecasts sharply lifted at Standard Chartered
Standard Chartered has significantly lifted its Ethereum price outlook, citing a significantly improved environment for the cryptocurrency.
The bank now projects ETH at $7,500 by end-2025, up from $4,000, and $25,000 by end-2028, versus $7,500 previously. It highlighted that “ETH treasury companies and ETFs have bought 3.8% of all ETH since the start of June,” a pace double the fastest rate of Bitcoin purchases by similar buyers.
Analysts pointed to stronger engagement from Ethereum’s backers, including plans to raise capacity on its layer 1 network. A major catalyst has been the July passage of the U.S. GENIUS Act, which “is unleashing stablecoins.”
With stablecoins making up 40% of blockchain fees and more than half issued on Ethereum, the bank expects higher liquidity to spur more decentralised finance activity, where ETH is dominant.
Ethereum’s global presence, early lead in smart contracts, and record of zero downtime remain key structural strengths, which, alongside these recent developments, “support our more bullish view,” the bank said.
Crypto price today: altcoins rally past Bitcoin as CPI data fuels rate cut bets
Broader crypto prices largely rallied past Bitcoin on Wednesday, as risk appetite was boosted by mild U.S. consumer price index inflation data, which ramped up bets on a September interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve.
Gains in crypto also came amid record-high rallies in broader risk-driven markets, especially equities.
Altcoins in particular were also boosted by increasing bets that corporates and institutions will seek to build treasuries of other crypto tokens.
World no.3 crypto XRP added 4.2% to $3.32. Cardano and Solana rallied 12% and 14%, respectively.
Among meme tokens, Dogecoin rose nearly 10%, while $TRUMP jumped 7.6%.
(Additional reporting by Vahid Karaahmetovic.)