Ethereum price analysis: ETH/USD gains 17%; the blame for the crash lies with ICO startups

The second-biggest digital currency by market value surged as much as 17% on a daily basis to $222 by the time of writing. The coin has turned from a total loser into a growth leader among the top-10 cryptocurrencies, recovering from the recent slump. Meanwhile, on a longer-term scale, Ethereum is still deep in red, down over 80% since the beginning of the year.
 
Just like any other coins in the crypto universe ETH is vulnerable to regulatory uncertainty and worries about slow institutional adoption. However, being the coin of the platform widely used for initial coin offerings, Ethereum fell victim to massive sales as some of the startups who used it to raise funds have started to cash out.

Startups have sold nearly 300,000 ETH (about $54 million) during the past 30 days, Trustnode research shows. The amount tripled from August figures with the most of the coins sold in recent ten days. This development added to Ethereum woes and sped up the decline.
 
Ethereum's technical picture

Now that ETH bulls managed to push the coin above $200 handle, their aim is $274. This resistance is created by the downside trendline from May 5 high. A sustainable movement higher will signal a trend reversal.

On the downside, ETH/USD is supported by $200. Next, comes SMA50 and SMA100 (1-hour) at $190 followed by $170.00 and Wednesday's low at $166.76. 

ETH/USD, 1-hour chart