Ethereum Price Jumps as Vitalik Buterin Donates 100 ETH to Tornado Cash – Is $5000 Target Within Reach?

Highlights:

• Ethereum’s price rose 4% to $3,466 despite a 6% drop in volume to $17 billion.
• Vitalik Buterin donated 100 ETH (~$340,000) for Tornado Cash developer Alexey Pertsev’s legal fees.
• Buterin’s donation sparked debates on transparency, accountability, and crypto regulations.

The Ethereum price has soared 4% in the last 24 hours to trade at $3,466 as of 6 a.m. EST on a 6% drop in trading volume to $17 billion. This jump in ETH price comes amid Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum, donating 100 ETH (worth about $340,000) to help offset the legal costs of Alexey Pertsev, the developer behind the mixing service Tornado Cash.

$ETH Generally sees a good amount of action in Q1. Even during the past few years during the downtrend against $BTC.

During the previous bull cycle, 2020 and 2021 saw large moves for the ETH/BTC ratio which also kick-started an alt season.

~0.04 remains an important level to… pic.twitter.com/rEjnriL88i

— Daan Crypto Trades (@DaanCrypto) January 1, 2025

A Dutch court sentenced him in May 2024 to more than five years in prison on money laundering charges. In 2022, Tornado Cash was banned in the U.S. on national security grounds; this ban was lifted in November 2023.

Buterin’s donation came amid an increasingly felt sense of solidarity within the cryptocurrency community for its developers in legal jeopardy. This support he has shown has raised some basic discussions of transparency, accountability, and the future of regulations in this fast-changing sector.

Ethereum Price Gears Up for Another Bullish Surge

ETH/USDT has set up one pretty interesting daily chart: the current price is $3,459.50, Range: 3,476.00 high; 3,354.50 low. Ethereum had managed to break higher after some consolidation at around $3,250, which may suggest a continued short-term uptrend. This is a very important breakout when confidence builds in a market where buyers turn up at critical levels.

Key levels of support and resistance remain the key determinants of Ethereum’s price action. Primary support to the downside comes in at $2,200 – $2,300, which has stood firm on those instances of poor price action. 200-day moving average at $2,984.21 is a very strong support of longer-term trend.

Meanwhile, support has collapsed to $3,250, now pivotal. Sustaining above this level confirms the breakout and gives further weight to the case for higher prices. Immediate upside resistance is the 50-day MA at $3,524.07. The breach of this would open possibilities of Ethereum reaching $3,750 as the next key level, the psychological milestone of $4,000, then a very real possibility.

The RSI presently is at 43.47, below the neutral mark of 50, indicating some mild bearish momentum in the market. However, an upward RSI crossover does suggest that bullish strength might build in confluence with the recent breakout.

Another sign of this is the convergence of the moving averages. The 50-day MA is also trending higher and closing in toward the current price, which could provide additional support in case of a minor pullback.

Bulls Target $4000 High in the Short-Term

The breakout above $3,250, combined with improving technical indicators, suggests more upside for Ethereum price. If the bullish momentum can be sustained, Ethereum could certainly make a challenge on the $3,750 level and possibly extend gains toward $4,000.

Failure to sustain above $3,250 may see Ethereum retreat to retest $3,000 and below the 200-day SMA at $2,984. Moving forward, traders will keenly watch the RSI and the MAs for any confirmations of sustained upside or a possible reversal.