Ethereum at risk of drop to $1,970 after Buterin challenges fee-burn focus

Key takeaways

• Ethereum (ETH) traded 1.3% higher on Tuesday while co-founder Vitalik Buterin ignited discussion about the token's long-term value.
• Bitmine Immersion Technologies purchased another 9,587 ETH, bringing its total to 6.07 million tokens, around 4.97% of the circulating supply.
• ETH could fall further toward $1,971 if the $2,101 support level gives way, with resistance at $2,204 and $2,250.

Ethereum (ETH) staged a modest recovery on Tuesday after renewed selling pressure the previous day.

The price action came as market participants assessed a discussion about the digital asset's long-term appeal, triggered by remarks from co-founder Vitalik Buterin.

Vitalik Buterin questions Ethereum’s fee-burning investment narrative

Buterin argued that Ethereum's investment case should be based mainly on its role as a secure, decentralized store of value, not on the amount of ETH taken out of circulation via transaction fee burning.

Expanding on why I believe “ETH as store of value (SoV)” makes much more sense to focus on than “ETH as fee-burning token”.

Three primary reasons:

1. ETH as fee-burning token never was as strong as it seemed
2. Optimizing for ETH as fee-burning token would demand Ethereum and ETH function in ways that are very hard to make compatible with decentralization and capture resistance.
3. Meanwhile, optimizing for ETH as SoV is aligned with Ethereum focusing on its unique strengths (decentralization and CROPS)

EIP-1559 (including its burn) is fine and good, we should keep them. But we should not feel sad if fee burn is < 10% of breakeven indefinitely; the value of ETH comes from elsewhere.

The core idea: the big thing that people appreciate about Ethereum is decentralization and CROPS. The main pragmatic benefit that these things translate into is stability. SoV is the category where that is not an unneeded extra we merely put effort into for ideological reasons, but rather a pragmatic strength from the perspective of people putting in their assets. And in the era of AI disruption, stability will be highly valued.

— vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) November 8, 2026

Since EIP-1559 was introduced in August 2021, the fee-burning mechanism has been a key part of Ethereum's investment story.

That upgrade created a system where the base transaction fee is permanently removed from circulation, lowering the amount of ETH in the market.

At times of high network usage, burned fees can surpass new token issuance, temporarily making supply deflationary.

Buterin pushed back against this argument in a Sunday post on X, saying investors have given too much weight to fee burning as a measure of Ethereum's economic worth.

Much of the network's past fee revenue came from crypto-related activity, he explained, making it heavily dependent on the broader digital asset market.

Buterin also warned that chasing higher fee revenue might encourage higher transaction costs, greater protocol spending, and more interventionist governance.

That could erode the decentralization and neutrality that set Ethereum apart from traditional finance.

Ethereum's long-term value should be grounded in its core properties, especially as artificial intelligence develops, Buterin argued.

He pointed to a framework called CROPS, which covers censorship and capture resistance, open source, privacy, and security.

These qualities could become more important in a world where AI systems handle more financial transactions and digital infrastructure, according to Buterin.

Bitmine Ethereum holdings reach 6.07 million ETH

Bitmine Immersion Technologies said on Monday it had bought another 9,587 ETH during the prior week, lifting its total holdings to roughly 6.07 million tokens.

That Ethereum treasury now accounts for about 4.97% of the estimated 122.2 million ETH in circulation.

With the latest acquisition, Bitmine moves closer to its stated goal of holding 5% of all circulating Ethereum.

In addition to its large stash, the firm said it keeps about 5.227 million ETH in staking positions through its Made in America Validator Network (MAVAN).

Ethereum price forecast: ETH bears target $1,971 support

Ethereum's technical picture remains bearish with the digital asset still trading under its major Exponential Moving Averages (EMAs).

On the daily chart, ETH sits below its 20-day, 50-day, and 100-day EMAs, which are grouped between roughly $2,291 and $2,371.

Being under those averages indicates sellers still control the broader market, and any recovery attempts are likely to meet resistance.

Momentum gauges back the negative view. The 14-day Relative Strength Index (RSI) is near 31, pointing to weak buying momentum and suggesting Ethereum is getting close to oversold territory.

The Stochastic Oscillator is around 9, reflecting even deeper oversold conditions.

To the downside, Ethereum has immediate support near $2,101. A clear break under that level could speed the drop to $1,971, the next important support area.

If sellers keep control and ETH cannot stabilize around $1,971, the correction might extend to $1,827.

Even with the bearish trend, Ethereum could stage a short-term bounce if buyers accumulate at current support levels.

The first notable resistance sits at $2,204, a level ETH needs to reclaim for any initial improvement in momentum.

A sustained recovery above that barrier could pave the way toward $2,250, followed by the 20-day EMA near $2,291.

Further resistance clusters around the 100-day EMA and the 2,355–2,371 zone, forming a large overhead supply block.

A convincing break above that cluster would mark a more meaningful improvement in Ethereum's technical setup and could signal that selling pressure is starting to fade.