Ethereum price is struggling this year even as Bitcoin remains near its all-time high and optimism in the crypto industry continues. ETH coin was trading at $3,400 on Friday, down by almost 15% from its highest level this year. These charts explain why the ETH price is in trouble this year.
Ethereum price formed a triple-top patternThe first chart is the weekly one, which shows that the ETH price found substantial resistance at around $4,053 level. A closer look shows that it failed to move above that price at least three times, forming a triple-top chart pattern whose neckline was at $2,112. A triple-top is one of the most bearish chart patterns in the market. In this case, it means that the ETH coin is still at risk as long as it remains below the $4,000 level. On the positive side, there is a likelihood that Ethereum has formed an inverse head and shoulders pattern, a popular bullish reversal sign. All this means that Ethereum price needs to move above the $4,000 level. It will remain at risk of more downside until that happens. 
ETH price chart by TradingView
Ethereum fees have crashedFor a long time, Ethereum was the most profitable players in the crypto industry because of its higher transaction fees and activity levels. It was also the most dominant player in key industries like stablecoins and Decentralized Finance. Ethereum has now lost market share in these industries and its network fees are falling. The chart below shows that Ethereum’s network has made $122 million this year. While this is a lot of money, it is less than what other networks like Tether, Tron, Jito, and Solana have made. Tether has already made over $275 million in fees this year. The other three have made over $204 million, $184 million, and $167 million this year. This means that the Ethereum network is not doing well, a trend that may affect its price in the long term. 
Ethereum total fees have lagged this year | TokenTerminal
Ethereum lost market share in the DEX industryMeanwhile, Ethereum was the most dominant player in the DEX industry as its key networks like Uniswap, Curve Finance, Fluid, and Balancer led. These days, however, this has changed and Ethereum is no longer the king of the DeX sector. Solana has handled over $227 billion in volume in the last 30 days, helped by the strong performance by the likes of Official Trump and Melania meme coins. Ethereum, on the other hand, has handled $80 billion in the same period. This means that Solana’s volume was 2.5x higher than Ethereum, something that was unheard a few months ago. The chart below shows that Solana’s volume overtook Ethereum in DEX volume. 
Ethereum has lost market share in DEX | Source: DeFi Llama
Ethereum balances are risingAnother chart that explains why Ethereum price is struggling is the rising balances on centralized exchanges. Data by CoinGlass shows that these balances have jumped sharply in the past few months. It now has 16.05 million ETH coins on exchanges, the highest level since November last year and up from 15.30 million a few months ago. High exchange balances is a sign that many investors are selling the coin. Therefore, there is a likelihood that the coin will continue falling if this trend continues. 
Ethereum balances on exchanges are rising | CoinGlass
Ethereum ETF inflowsThe other chart to watch is the Ethereum ETF trends. This chart shows that these funds had a net outflow of almost $15 million on Thursday. These funds have had net inflows of just $2.7 billion since their inception and now hold over $11.8 billion. In contrast, Bitcoin ETFs have added over $188 million on Thursday and have added $39 billion in net assets. These funds flow show that institutional investors are not interested in Ether. 
ETH ETF inflows chart | Source: $2.7 billionMore By This Author:Hang Seng, CSI 300 Lead Asian Markets Higher, Nikkei Extends Gains To 5th Day Gold Prices Snap Three-Day Rally: What’s Next? Will Shoppers Pay The Price? Retail CEOs Weigh Impact Of Trump Tariffs On Consumers
