Bitcoin Hits $124K, Ethereum Nears Record Highs

Bitcoin and Ethereum Hit Records on Cooling Inflation and ETF Inflows

14th August 2025 • 9mins read

This Week’s Recap

Bitcoin prices reach fresh all time high above $124,000 BTC set a new record above $124,000 on August 13, with Ether nearing its own peak. The move came as rate cut odds rose and crypto policy signals turned more supportive, with Reuters noting intraday prints near $124,002 on August 14. (forbes.com, reuters.com)
Ether Eyes Record High as Options Traders Bet Big on $5,000 ETH is approaching all-time highs as options traders pile into $5,000 strike calls, signaling bullish sentiment. Institutional flows into ETH have accelerated alongside DeFi market gains, with macro tailwinds adding support. A confirmed breakout could trigger further upside, though volatility is likely to spike if positions unwind.
U.S. Spot Ether ETFs Hit 1 Billion USD Daily Inflow for First Time Spot ETH ETFs in the U.S. saw over $1 billion in daily inflows on August 12, marking a historic milestone for institutional adoption. Flows were concentrated in the top three issuers, driven by anticipation of rate cuts and Ethereum’s strong network fundamentals. Persistent inflows could bolster ETH liquidity and price stability.
Standard Chartered Lifts ETH Target to $7,500 by Year-End and $25,000 in 2028 Standard Chartered raised its ETH price forecast to $7,500 by the end of 2025 and $25,000 by 2028, citing strong ETF demand, robust network activity, and scaling upgrades. Analysts pointed to Ethereum’s growing role in DeFi and institutional portfolios as key drivers.
Donald Trump Signs Order Letting Crypto Into 401(k) Retirement Plans U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order allowing cryptocurrencies to be included in 401(k) retirement plans. The policy change opens a new channel for retail and institutional exposure to digital assets, with proponents citing diversification benefits and critics warning of volatility risks.
Senate Banking Committee Democratic Staff Slam GOP Crypto Draft Bill Democratic staffers on the Senate Banking Committee criticized a Republican-backed crypto regulatory draft, calling it a “superhighway” for avoiding oversight. The memo argued the bill would weaken consumer protections and limit the SEC’s enforcement powers, setting up a partisan clash over the future of crypto regulation.

SEC to Focus on ‘Clear’ Crypto Regulations After Ripple Case: Atkins Former SEC Commissioner Paul Atkins said the agency will prioritize developing clear crypto rules following the Ripple case outcome. He emphasized that regulatory certainty is essential for innovation and investor protection, signaling potential shifts in enforcement and guidance.
Trump-Linked World Liberty Seeks 1.5 Billion USD for Public Crypto Holding Firm World Liberty, an investment vehicle tied to Donald Trump, is seeking to raise 1.5 billion USD to launch a publicly traded crypto holding company. The firm plans to acquire and manage a portfolio of digital assets, with the capital raise targeting institutional backers.
Takeaways From Circle’s First Post-IPO Earnings Call: Arc L1 Coming Circle’s first earnings call after its IPO revealed plans for “Arc,” a new Layer 1 blockchain. Management highlighted strong USDC adoption, revenue growth from payment services, and ambitions to expand infrastructure offerings, positioning Arc as a key growth driver.
Institutional Frenzy Pushes Ethereum DEX Volumes Above Solana Ethereum-based decentralized exchanges saw trading volumes surpass Solana’s amid a surge in institutional activity. Analysts cited large block trades, ETH ETF inflows, and DeFi liquidity growth as drivers of the shift, marking a reversal from Solana’s dominance earlier in the year.
U.S. July CPI Rose 2.7% YoY; Core 3.1% — Here’s How It Affects Crypto U.S. consumer prices rose 2.7% year-over-year in July, with core CPI at 3.1%, slightly above expectations. While the data suggests inflation remains sticky, it boosted crypto sentiment by keeping a September Fed rate cut in play, supporting risk assets like BTC and ETH.
Bitcoin, Ether Bounce as U.S. Inflation Cools, Boosting Odds of September Fed Cut BTC and ETH rallied after U.S. inflation data came in cooler than feared, lifting expectations for a September interest rate cut. The move coincided with higher ETF inflows and renewed retail activity, helping push prices toward key technical resistance levels.
Ethereum Wallet MetaMask Will Likely Unveil Its Own Stablecoin This Week MetaMask is expected to launch “mUSD,” its native stablecoin, within the week. Sources say the release aims to deepen user engagement and create new revenue streams through DeFi integrations, potentially positioning mUSD as a major on-chain payment rail.

Pump.fun Is Back on Top and Solana Meme Coins Are Soaring Solana-based launchpad Pump.fun regained the top spot in meme coin activity, fueling a rally in SOL ecosystem tokens. Analysts point to retail speculation, treasury buys, and viral token launches as catalysts behind the surge.
Solana Jumps 15% to Reclaim 200 USD as Altcoin Market Heats Up on Treasury Accumulation SOL rose 15% to reclaim the 200 USD level amid reports of rapid treasury accumulation across the altcoin market. The rally reflects broader risk-on sentiment and growing institutional participation in non-BTC assets.
‘Altcoin’ Google Searches Hit Highest Since 2021 Amid ETF & Treasury Headlines Google search interest for “altcoin” reached its highest level since 2021, driven by headlines on ETF approvals and large-scale treasury accumulations. The spike in retail curiosity mirrors rising trading volumes in non-BTC assets, signaling a potential expansion of the current altcoin rally.
Pump.fun’s Average Buyback Price Sits ~40% Above Spot Amid Softer Revenue Following its 600 million USD ICO last month, Pump.fun has spent over 30 million USD repurchasing its token at an average price roughly 40% above current market value. While buybacks have supported price, analysts warn sustainability could be challenged if revenue declines.
OKB token price surges as OKX slashes supply by 50% OKX permanently removed 65.26 million OKB, cutting supply by just over 50 percent and capping total tokens at 21 million; OKB jumped over 200 percent intraday, with trading volume around 723 million USD.
Memecoin launchpad Odin.fun suffers 7 million USD liquidity exploit Attackers manipulated a liquidity pool to drain roughly 7 million USD; Odin.fun paused operations while investigating and coordinating with exchanges.
BTC dominance falls below 60% as crypto and U.S. stocks hit new highs Bitcoin’s share of total crypto market value slipped under 60 percent for the first time since February 1, as total crypto market cap moved above 4 trillion USD and bitcoin’s market cap hovered near 2.39 trillion USD.
ZK proofs hitting escape velocity, and ETH may be feeling it Blockworks argues that maturing ZK proving systems are flipping L2 security and UX tradeoffs, reducing perceived technical risk and accelerating ZK rollup adoption on Ethereum,

Bitcoin Market Analysis

Bitcoin advanced this week, establishing a new all time high at $127,128. on August 14, 2025, and setting a weekly low at $114,335.82. The trend remained upward, with price action characterized by higher highs and higher lows. Volatility was elevated but orderly, consistent with an ATR of $2,822.66. Price ended the period near $123,317, aligned with gains of 7.31 percent over seven days.

Source: https://altfins.com/

Technical signals support a bullish structure. All key moving averages, SMA and EMA from 5 to 200 days, slope higher, which confirms trend strength across timeframes. Momentum is firm but not overheated, RSI 14 sits within the neutral 30 to 70 band, while faster oscillators are stretched, Stochastic RSI is overbought. MACD is bullish, the Ultimate Oscillator is bullish, and an unusual volume spike corroborates the breakout. Price has already tagged the upper Bollinger Band at $122,536.04, so a routine mean reversion toward the mid band would be consistent with an ongoing uptrend. ADX near 23.31 indicates a trend that is established but not fully mature.

Key execution levels are well defined. On the downside, $121,000 is the breakout pivot that now serves as first support; a reaction area sits around $119,000 to $120,000; the VWMA at $117,545.22 is the next reference; the lower support zone near $112,000 aligns with the lower Bollinger context at $112,129.68, with $100,000 as a psychological backstop. On the upside, the next resistance cluster is $126,000 to $127,000; a decisive daily close above that opens measured targets at $128,000 and then $136,000.

Source: https://sosovalue.com/assets/etf/us-btc-spot

Spot Bitcoin ETF flows turned decisively positive. From August 5 through August 13, seven consecutive trading days recorded net inflows, including $403.88 million on August 8, $280.69 million on August 7, $178.15 million on August 11, $65.95 million on August 12, and $86.91 million on August 13. This followed notable outflows earlier in the month, $812.25 million on August 1, $333.19 million on August 4, and $114.83 million on July 31. As of the latest reading, cumulative net inflows stand at $54.76 billion, total value traded for the day was $4.97 billion, and total net assets are $158.64 billion.

Ethereum Market Analysis

Ethereum advanced decisively this week, breaking above the $4,000 resistance that recently capped rallies and printing a high of $4,785.69 with a weekly low of $3,661.29. Structure remains constructive, with higher highs and higher lows and a 1W gain of 29.80%. Volatility was elevated but orderly, consistent with an ATR of $212.09 and a current range near one times ATR. At about $4,750.00, price sits 1.94 percent below the all time high of $4,878.26, and 245.46 percent above the 52 week low of $1,384.73.

Technical conditions confirm trend strength while highlighting stretched momentum. Short, medium, and intermediate moving averages, SMA and EMA from 5 to 100 days, are rising. The 200 day averages still slope lower, which reflects lagging behavior relative to the recent acceleration. Momentum is overbought on RSI 14, consistent with readings above 70. Oscillators are similarly extended, Stochastic RSI near 94.52, with trend quality strong, ADX about 47.24. MACD is bullish, the Ultimate Oscillator is bullish, and price has ridden above the upper Bollinger Band at $4,663.06, a configuration that often precedes brief consolidations within ongoing advances.

Key price levels are clearly defined for execution and risk. On the downside, first support is the breakout pivot at $4,000, followed by the VWMA near $3,965.52, then the stated support zones at $3,450.00 and $3,000.00. A sustained daily close above $4,780 would keep the path open toward a retest of $4,878.26 and the $5,000 psychological round number. Failure to hold above $4,000 would shift focus to $3,965, then $3,450.

Source: https://sosovalue.com/assets/etf/us-eth-spot

Spot Ether ETF flows strengthened meaningfully into mid August. From August 5 through August 13, seven consecutive trading days posted net inflows, including $461.21 million on August 8, $222.34 million on August 7, $1.02 billion on August 11, $523.92 million on August 12, and $729.14 million on August 13, alongside smaller additions of $93.92 million and $35.12 million. This followed outflows of $152.26 million on August 1 and $465.06 million on August 4, indicating a clear inflection toward sustained demand. As of August 13, cumulative net inflows stand at $12.09 billion, daily value traded was $4.47 billion, and total net assets reached $29.72 billion.

Options positioning has turned notably bullish. Market data show aggressive buying of $5,000 strike calls for late September expiry, alongside interest at higher strikes, which can create positive gamma dynamics as dealers hedge short call exposure by buying spot into strength. Such flows can accelerate an upside breakout, although the positioning also raises the risk of sharp reversals if price stalls and hedges are unwound. In practical terms, the options market currently reinforces a breakout bias for ETH while increasing the probability of elevated realized volatility into expiries.

Source: https://www.theblock.co/data/crypto-markets/options

Institutional demand is also reflected in primary market activity and in revised sell side targets. U.S. spot Ether ETFs recorded more than $1B in a single day of net inflows on August 12, concentrated among the largest issuers, which improves secondary liquidity and lowers transaction costs for sizable allocations. Separately, Standard Chartered lifted its ETH targets to $7,500 by year end 2025 and $25,000 by 2028, citing ETF demand and network fundamentals. These developments are supportive for price discovery and market depth, although price targets remain projections, not guarantees, so monitoring the persistence of daily creations and broader macro conditions is essential.