What is the price trend of Ethereum in 2026?

Ethereum has shown steady performance at the beginning of the year, with technology breakthroughs leading the trend. According to CoinDesk data, Ethereum started at $28.63 in January 2026 and fluctuated upwards to its closing price of $31.12 on January 16, with a range increase of 8.7%, reaching a high of $32.19. On January 14, the transaction volume reached a new high of $459 million. Unlike the pulse like rise of $3600 on the day of the December 2025 interest rate cut (note: different pricing dimensions, sub statistical caliber), this round of trend is more sustainable, with the core driving force being the expectation of technological upgrades rather than simply loose liquidity.

The expected technological breakthrough in the first quarter is the core support of the Ethereum market. The integration of Zero Knowledge Ethereum Virtual Machine (ZKEVM) and PeerDAS technology reshapes the market's perception of its value. Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin announced in January that two technologies will collaborate to crack the "impossible triangle" of blockchain, achieving decentralization, consensus mechanisms, and high bandwidth. ZKEVM has achieved production level performance, with proven time reduced from 16 minutes to 16 seconds and cost reduced by 45 times. 99% of blocks can be verified within 10 seconds; PeerDAS technology improves network throughput while maintaining decentralization.

The Ethereum Foundation's roadmap strengthens market confidence and specifies the implementation of multiple technologies by 2026: raising the gas cap through mechanisms such as balance attack restrictions within the year, and launching the first batch of ZKEVM nodes; From 2026 to 2028, promote gas repricing and status adjustment, migrate execution loads to improve throughput. Institutional funds have been actively deployed, with JPMorgan launching a $100 million Ethereum tokenization fund, Deutsche Bank developing the ZKsync two-layer network, and 24 institutions testing asset tokenization to provide solid support for Ethereum prices.

Ethereum's strong momentum has driven a frenzy in the altcoin market, with funds shifting towards high-quality ecological tokens. Affected by Layer 2 expansion and technology spillover, privacy coins, Web3 games, and DeFi tracks led the gains. Mind Network (FHE) gained 85.64% in a single day thanks to its collaboration with Chainlink and technological advantages, and was endorsed by Binance Labs; The veteran Zcash (ZEC) has risen over 800% from its September 2025 low, highlighting its privacy asset hedging properties.

The Web3 gaming track has exploded simultaneously, and the Ethereum Layer2 ecological token has performed outstandingly. The Ancient 8 Token (A8) rose 24.93% in a single day, while the Echelon Prime Token (PRIME) rose 18.45% due to ecological expansion. The binding of the track with the Ethereum ecosystem drove funds into the market. In addition, the cross chain and DeFi tracks are active, with XDC Network (XDC) rising nearly 20% in a single day, and Radiant Capital (RDNT) rising 14.11% after upgrading. Funds are concentrated in altcoins with technical barriers, and the market has obvious characteristics of "eliminating counterfeits and preserving truth".

While market sentiment is high, Ethereum and altcoins still face the risk of a pullback. From a technical perspective, the price is approaching early resistance, with a single day correction of 2.91% in mid January and shrinking trading volume, and some funds taking profits. The regulatory framework is not yet perfect, and there are concerns about compliance uncertainty; V God also warns that the complexity of the protocol may weaken the trustless nature, and the security risks of technology implementation need to be vigilant.