Ethereum (ETH) is under increasing pressure due to whale activity as major holders continue to sell off significant amounts of their holdings.

This selling trend is occurring during a tough time for the cryptocurrency, with Ethereum dealing with a lackluster performance in terms of pricing.

The drop in Ethereum's price has been significant, with a 51.3% decrease since the start of the year. While external economic factors have impacted the entire crypto market, Ethereum has been particularly hard hit. Last week, the altcoin reached its lowest point since March 2023.

Despite this, Ethereum saw a slight recovery after a temporary tariff halt. Currently, Ethereum is trading at $1,623, showing a slight increase of 0.3% in the last 24 hours.

Investor interest has waned due to Ethereum's poor performance. Data from Glassnode indicates a sharp decline this year in the number of addresses holding more than $1 million worth of ETH, hitting a low not seen since January 2023.

There has been a noticeable decrease in whale activity as well. Recent reports showed whales offloading significant amounts of ETH, with one notable case being a whale depositing 20,000 ETH to the Kraken exchange for potential sales.

Furthermore, there are reports of early ICO investors consistently selling off their holdings. In one case, a whale sold 632 ETH worth around $1.0 million in one transaction.

The increase in dormant whales resuming activities is also worth noting. While these sell-offs are still profitable, they indicate a trend towards further actions in the near future.

Some analysts draw parallels between Ethereum’s current situation and Nokia's decline in the late 2000s, suggesting that Ethereum could face challenges in maintaining its position against faster and more scalable platforms like Solana (SOL). However, others remain optimistic, pointing to potential technological advancements and market undervaluation as reasons to expect a recovery in Ethereum's performance.