The bank has maintained its highly optimistic forecast for Ethereum despite the asset’s current weak price action.
Standard Chartered has maintained its highly optimistic forecast for Ethereum (ETH) despite the asset’s current weak price action. The bank expects ETH▲$1,735.86 to reach $4K by the end of 2026 and $40K by the end of 2030. It also forecasts the ETH/BTC▲$64,193.00 ratio to recover to 0.08, the peak of 2021.
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Comparison With Amazon After the Dot-Com Crash
Standard Chartered’s Global Head of Digital Assets Research, Geoff Kendrick, compared Ethereum’s current situation to Amazon’s stock in 2001. At that time, Amazon’s stock crashed from $113 to $6, yet all of the company’s internal business metrics continued to improve.
“While the stock price was moving in the wrong direction, inside the company everything was moving in the right direction,” Kendrick quoted Jeff Bezos.
He added that since then, Amazon’s stock, adjusted for splits, has risen more than 1,000 times. In his view, Ethereum will catch up to its internal metrics—it is only a matter of time.
Read more: Ethereum Price Falls Below $2,000 for First Time Since March
ETH Price Dynamics and Fundamental Metrics
Ethereum has fallen approximately 57% from its August 2025 highs and currently trades near $2,000. The ETH/BTC ratio has declined 37% over the same period.
Meanwhile, on-chain network activity remains at record levels. Transaction counts and TVL denominated in ETH are near all-time highs.
Key Growth Drivers
Standard Chartered analysts highlight two main factors:
- Stablecoins. Ethereum controls 54% of the market. By 2028, stablecoin volume could grow sixfold to $2T. Stablecoins already account for about one-third of all transactions and 60% of gross TVL in the ecosystem.
- Tokenized real-world assets (RWA). Ethereum holds 62% of the market and 68% of active on-chain loans. The sector is expected to grow 50-fold to $2T by 2028.
Additional catalysts include the launch of the Ethereum Economic Zone (EEZ), which will simplify asset movement between EVM networks, and potential passage of the CLARITY Act in the US.
Analysts’ Conclusion
Standard Chartered believes the current divergence between Ethereum’s strong fundamentals and its market price is temporary. The bank remains confident that in the long term, the network will strengthen its dominance in stablecoins and RWA, leading to significant ETH price appreciation.
Learn more: What Is XRPL Update — Is It Finally Ready to Beat Ethereum in RWA and DeFi?
