Deep Dive
1. Token Unlock Impact (Bearish Catalyst)
Overview:
Ethena unlocked 212.5M ENA tokens ($126.7M) on October 1, part of scheduled releases for investors and early contributors. This follows a separate 40.63M ENA unlock ($23.43M) on October 2.
What this means:
- Increased circulating supply often leads to short-term selling pressure, especially when unlocks coincide with weak market sentiment.
- Recipients (e.g., early investors) frequently sell tokens post-unlock to secure profits, as seen in ENA’s 15% weekly drop (CoinJournal).
What to look out for:
Exchange inflow spikes and on-chain whale movements – 80M ENA moved to exchanges in the past two weeks (Ali Charts).
2. Technical Weakness (Bearish Signal)
Overview:
ENA broke below the $0.55 support level (23.6% Fibonacci retracement), with key indicators flashing red:
- MACD: -0.033 histogram, signaling bearish momentum acceleration.
- RSI (7-day): 30.59 (approaching oversold territory but not yet reversal-ready).
What this means:
Traders exited positions after the breakdown, exacerbated by ENA trading below its 30-day SMA ($0.68) and 200-day EMA ($0.55). The $0.50–$0.55 zone now acts as critical support.
3. Altcoin Risk Aversion (Mixed Impact)
Overview:
The crypto Fear & Greed Index sits at 43 (Neutral), with Bitcoin dominance rising to 58.34% as traders favor lower-risk assets.
What this means:
- ENA’s -11% weekly loss outpaced the total crypto market’s -0.72% decline, reflecting outsized risk in tokens with large unlocks.
- Derivatives data shows ENA’s funding rate turned negative (-0.0017%), indicating bearish leverage positioning.
Conclusion
ENA’s drop reflects a trifecta of supply dilution, technical breakdowns, and sector-wide caution ahead of major token unlocks. While Ethena’s synthetic dollar protocol continues gaining adoption (USDe supply hit $12.9B), short-term headwinds dominate.
Key watch: Can ENA hold the $0.50–$0.55 support zone, or will unlock-related selling push it toward the 38.2% Fibonacci level at $0.48?