Ethereum Price Forecast: SharpLink poaches former BlackRock executive amid ETH comeback

Ethereum price today: $3,650

• Ethereum treasury company SharpLink Gaming has hired Joseph Chalom, a former BlackRock executive, as its co-CEO.
• Ethereum ETFs continue their winning streak, registering 15 consecutive days of net inflows amid a slight increase in profit taking.
• ETH eyes the $4,100 critical resistance following consolidation in the $3,470-$3,780 range.

Ethereum (ETH) is down 2% on Friday as SharpLink Gaming (SBET) revealed that a former BlackRock executive will join the company as co-CEO. The announcement comes amid strong demand for the top altcoin from corporate treasuries and US spot ETH exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

SharpLink poaches BlackRock executive as ETH ETFs continue winning streak

Ethereum treasury firm SharpLink Gaming announced on Friday that it has hired Joseph Chalom, BlackRock's former Head of Digital Assets Strategy, as its co-CEO.

"I am joining SharpLink because I see a powerful opportunity to help shape the future of financial infrastructure and decentralized finance," said Chalom.

Chalom spent two decades at BlackRock, where he played key roles in launching the asset manager's crypto products, including the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) and the BUIDL tokenized fund.

"Few executives in the world have had the kind of impact Joseph has had in unlocking institutional adoption of digital assets, having pioneered BlackRock's strategic entry into the space," said Joseph Lubin, SharpLink Chairman and Consensys CEO.

The move comes amid a rising trend where public companies are switching towards a cryptocurrency reserve, with ETH treasuries gaining traction in recent months.

SharpLink holds over 360,000 ETH, with plans to boost its acquisition of the top altcoin through an upsized $6 billion At-The-Market (ATM) facility.

Meanwhile, US spot Ethereum ETFs continued their winning streak after registering a fifteenth consecutive day of net inflows worth $231.23 million, per SoSoValue data. The products have pulled in over $4.6 billion during the period.

BlackRock's ETHA has been responsible for the majority of the flows, becoming the third-fastest ETF to cross the $10 billion mark on Wednesday.

Despite the sustained inflows, ETH investors have begun to show signs of caution, with over $750 million in realized profits on Thursday.

ETH Network Realized Profit/Loss. Source: Santiment

Ethereum price forecast: ETH consolidates after two-week-long rally

Ethereum saw $115.49 million in futures liquidations in the past 24 hours, comprising $82.57 million and $32.91 million in liquidated long and short positions, respectively, according to Coinglass data.

ETH has largely been consolidating in the $3,470-$3,780 range over the past week, amid seeing a rejection near $3,850 on Monday. The range-bound movement comes after a strong uptrend that lasted for about two weeks.

A firm move above this range could put ETH in motion to test the critical resistance near $4,100, which has proven to be dominated by bears over the past year.

"Sellers are active in this zone, and a move toward these levels would need to be accompanied by a strong buy-side volume to flip the resistance zone," Ray Youssef, CEO of NoOnes, told FXStreet.

ETH/USDT 12-hour chart

On the downside, ETH could find support near $3,470 if it fails to hold the 20-period Exponential Moving Average (EMA). Further down, the $3,220 level, strengthened by the 50-period EMA, also serves as support.

The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is trending downward after retreating from its overbought region, while the Stochastic Oscillator (Stoch) has moved below its neutral level, signaling weakening bullish momentum.