Ethereum's native ether token and other altcoins have continued to underperform bitcoin despite the broader crypto market recovery following the Iran conflict, JPMorgan analysts said.
"And this underperformance trend that started in 2023 is unlikely to change unless we see meaningful improvements in network activity, DeFi and real world applications," the JPMorgan analysts led by managing director Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou said in a report.
Bitcoin (BTC) has recovered more strongly than ether (ETH) across both spot exchange-traded fund flows and institutional futures positioning since the market selloff tied to the conflict, the analysts noted. They said spot bitcoin ETFs have recovered roughly two-thirds of their previous outflows, while spot ether ETFs have recovered only about one-third.
The analysts also pointed to CME futures positioning as a sign that institutional investors have rebuilt bitcoin exposure more aggressively than ether exposure. Bitcoin futures positioning has recovered almost fully from its earlier drawdown, while ether futures positioning remains below previous levels, they said.
Meanwhile, momentum-focused traders such as commodity trading advisors and crypto quant funds still appear to be "slightly underweight" both bitcoin and ether following last October's deleveraging event, the analysts said.
