Ethereum Whale Liquidation Sparks Sell-Off as ETH Dips Below $1,800

• Ethereum’s price drop below $1,800 triggered a major whale liquidation, amplifying market selling pressure.
• ETH’s declining price from December 2024 to March 2025 led to reduced open interest, signaling waning trader engagement.
• The ETH/BTC pair is in a re-accumulation phase, hinting at a potential breakout towards 0.14 BTC in 2025.

According to Lookonchain , Ethereum’s current price drop below $1,800 has triggered the liquidation of a whale who had 67,675 ETH valued at $121.8 million. Despite the efforts to prevent liquidation by adding 2,000 ETH ($3.73M) and repaying 1.54 million DAI, the price still dropped below the level of $1,836.43. 

Ethereum’s Price Action and Open Interest Decline

Besides the liquidation concerns, Data from Santiment shows Ethereum price movements from September 2024 to March 2025. The ETH price followed a strong upward trajectory from mid-September, peaking in early December before entering a decline in January. By March 12, 2025, the price had dropped to approximately $1,949, reflecting bearish sentiment.

Source: Santiment

Additionally, open interest in USD per exchange for ETH followed a similar pattern. It surged from mid-October, peaked in December, and then declined alongside Ethereum’s price. By March 12, open interest had fallen to around $3.51 billion, signifying reduced market engagement. Total open interest in USD also mirrored these fluctuations, reaching approximately $7.77 billion on the same date.

Hence, the correlation between ETH price and open interest is apparent. The rising price led to higher open interest, reflecting high trading activity. However, the falling price led to a drop in open interest, signaling declining trader interest. The market volatility between December 2024 and March 2025 fueled this trend, reducing open interest.

ETH/BTC Pair Poised for a Major Breakout

As per analyst Merlijn The Trader information, patterns suggest a move for the ETH/BTC trading pair. Since 2015, Ethereum has experienced multiple accumulation and re-accumulation phases, leading to sharp breakouts. 

Source: Merlijn

The ETH/BTC emerged at a lower end in 2017 and went all the way up to 0.14 BTC, after which it fell into a prolonged phase of accumulation from 2018 to 2021. The current ETH/BTC pair is once again in another re-accumulation phase , following a descending channel since mid-2022; this trend now further suggest approaching breakout just as the year 2017 did.