ETH/BTC ratio breaks above 0.02858 as Tom Lee calls revival

Tom Lee says the ETH/BTC ratio breakout above 0.02858 signals a broader crypto market resurgence is underway, driven by stablecoin growth and tokenization trends.

The ETH/BTC ratio climbed to 0.02858 this week, breaking above a resistance level that had held since June. The move marks a potential shift in capital flows between the two largest digital assets by market capitalization.

"Ether is money narrative likely gains traction," Tom Lee, co-founder of Fundstrat and chairman of Bitmine, said in a note. Lee has tracked the ratio for months as a barometer for the wider market and argues the breakout points to a shift already underway.

Lee ties the rise to growth in stablecoins, tokenization and new Ethereum spinoff projects, as well as falling oil prices and progress on the CLARITY Act. The ratio still sits 7.72% lower over the past three months, even after this week's bounce. Spot ether funds also posted a seven-week outflow streak in late June, a trend that has only partly reversed, according to CoinShares data. Bitcoin dominance, which had climbed above 55% in May, has edged lower as capital shows signs of rotating into alternative tokens.

Traders often treat the ETH/BTC ratio as a proxy for risk appetite across the wider altcoin market. A sustained climb would suggest capital is rotating out of Bitcoin and into higher-beta tokens, a pattern that historically accompanies broader alt season rallies. Whether the breakout holds through the second half of 2026 will determine if Lee's revival call was early or simply too soon.

Bitmine's Accumulation Nears End

Bitmine has been a large buyer of Ethereum through a heavy accumulation phase, though Lee recently hinted that strategy is nearing its conclusion. He tied a separate ether selloff earlier this quarter to routine quarter-end window dressing rather than weakening fundamentals, according to a report from BeInCrypto.

The ETH/BTC ratio touched 0.15 only briefly at its 2017 peak and has stayed below that level since. Lee's $250,000 ether target would push the ratio above 25 times that 2017 high, based on current Bitcoin prices.

What to Watch

The ratio's ability to hold above 0.02858 in the coming weeks will be the first test of whether the breakout is genuine. A failure to maintain the level could signal that the recent move was a short-term squeeze rather than a structural rotation. The next resistance level sits near 0.030, a threshold not tested since early 2026.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.