A popular pseudonymous crypto analyst on X known as «Wolf has outlined a bullish roadmap for ether, predicting the second-largest cryptocurrency could hit $13,000 as early as the fourth quarter. While $13,000 is his optimistic scenario, Wolf’s conservative target still places ETH above $8,000 — more than double its current level.

In a chart-based post shared Friday, Wolf said he expects ether to continue rising sharply after reaching new all-time highs, though he warned of a 20%–25% correction following that breakout. He characterized this pullback as a “final shakeout” before a longer-term rally resumes.

Supporting the bullish outlook, institutional activity appears to be picking up. On-chain analysis service «Lookonchain» reported Monday that SharpLink Gaming (SBET), the Nasdaq-listed company that launched its ETH treasury strategy on June 2, had purchased another 77,210 ETH for roughly $295 million. The company now holds 438,017 ETH — worth approximately $1.69 billion — making it the largest publicly traded corporate holder of ether.

The purchase follows SharpLink’s appointment of former BlackRock executive Joseph Chalom as its new co-CEO last week, and came just three days after the company disclosed 567 ETH earned in staking rewards since it started accumulating ether.

Meanwhile, Placeholder Ventures partner Chris Burniske noted that sentiment around ether has shifted dramatically over the past month. “ETH went from most hated coin to darling of CT in ~5 weeks,” he wrote, referring to the crypto community on X. The token has gained roughly 73% since June 23.

Ether is currently trading at $3,884, up 2% in the past 24 hours, according to CoinDesk data.

Technical Analysis Highlights

• According to CoinDesk Research’s technical analysis data model, ETH climbed from $3,771.30 to $3,888.72 between July 27 at 09:00 UTC and July 28 at 08:00 UTC, posting a 3.11% gain with a 4.91% intraday range.
• The token broke through key resistance around $3,837–$3,850 on strong volume, establishing a new support zone and positioning ETH for a potential advance toward $3,950–$4,000.
• In the final 60 minutes of the session, ETH rose from $3,890.61 to $3,898.38. A sharp spike from $3,876 to $3,898 occurred at 08:05 UTC on elevated volume, confirming strong institutional interest at breakout levels.

Disclaimer: Parts of this article were generated with the assistance from AI tools and reviewed by our editorial team to ensure accuracy and adherence to our standards. For more information, see CoinDesk’s full AI Policy.