• Ethereum dominance has collapsed to a five-year low of 8%.
• AMBCrypto’s data shows Ethereum’s dominance has declined since mid-2024, despite a bullish cycle.

Ethereum [ETH] emerged as one of Q1’s biggest high-cap underperformers.

While its price drawdown remains in focus, a more concerning metric is its market dominance, which has plunged to a five-year low of 8%.

In fact, it’s the metric that has retracted levels last witnessed during the COVID-induced market cycle.

Back then, ETH dominance staged a sharp Q2 recovery, reclaiming a double-digit foothold.

However, this time, key technicals diverge – RSI remains anchored in oversold territory, failing to reset despite ETH trading at a two-year low.

Clearly, Ethereum’s risk-off sentiment remains elevated, suppressing fresh retail inflows and limiting upside momentum. Given the current conditions, a 2020-style dominance resurgence appears unlikely.

Additionally, beyond on-chain metrics and technicals, a broader structural shift is evident.

AMBCrypto’s analysis of the chart above highlights Ethereum’s sustained dominance downtrend since mid-2024, despite a historically bullish macrocycle.

Key catalysts – including post-halving capital rotations, the Trump rally, and the Federal Reserve’s three rate cuts – failed to ignite a meaningful recovery.

Despite these tailwinds, ETH closed the year with a modest 47% annual gain.

However, its market dominance eroded by 4%, retracing to 12% by Q4 2024, underscoring persistent “relative” weakness against broader market trends.

Ethereum dominance declines against macro trends

As Ethereum’s dominance eroded throughout 2024, Bitcoin’s market dominance (BTC.D) surged from 54% to 61% by mid-Q4, propelling BTC’s total market capitalization near the $2 trillion milestone for the first time in history.

This shift underscores ETH’s relative weakness, driven by aggressive capital rotations into Bitcoin, fueled by macro-driven risk positioning and speculative front-running of a potential “Trump pump.”

A similar capital flow imbalance is now unfolding. Institutional demand for Bitcoin has dominated since March, while ETH ETFs continue to bleed outflows, signaling weak conviction.

As macro uncertainty deepens, institutional liquidity will dictate market stability. Bitcoin is increasingly cementing its role as a risk-off asset.

Meanwhile, Ethereum continues to lose market share – its five-year dominance low reinforcing the narrative of persistent capital rotation away from ETH.