Ethereum Roars Back: $2.9B in Inflows and Robinhood’s Layer-2 Ignite Rally

ETH price surge gained steam over the weekend, going up 3.5% in 24 hours to $2,519 as of June 30. Several factors contributed to ETH breaking back above the $2,500 level: nearly $2.9 billion in year-to-date inflows into Ethereum investment products, the Ethereum Community Conference (EthCC) in Cannes, and Robinhood’s plans to launch a new Layer-2 blockchain on Arbitrum.

However, as at press time, Ethereum is experiencing a slight decline, trading at $2,454, on the news of a whale unstaking and transferring 68,000 ETH ($165M) to exchanges

Institutional Money Flows: $429M in Weekly ETF Inflows

CoinShares reports $429 million in net inflows into Ethereum investment products over the past week, bringing 2025’s total ETH fund inflows to almost $2.9 billion. Ethereum is one of the most popular assets in digital portfolios this year with institutional sentiment turning positive.

Notably, these inflows coincide with a steady decline in ETH held on centralized exchanges and a big increase in staked ETH. On-chain data shows over 35 million ETH, 28% of total supply is now locked in staking contracts, reducing liquid supply and supporting the long-term investment thesis.

EthCC 2025: Developer Activity Adds Fundamental Strength

Ethereum’s largest annual developer conference, the Ethereum Community Conference (EthCC), kicked off this week in Cannes, France. The four-day event had 6,400 attendees and 500 speakers, including core Ethereum contributors, builders and venture leaders.

Topics dominating EthCC panels were rollup optimisation, DeFi integrations and Ethereum’s roadmap. One big announcement came from co-founder Vitalik Buterin who introduced a privacy-preserving digital identity framework using zero-knowledge proofs. This allows users to verify attributes; like age or citizenship, without disclosing personal data and could be key for Web3 applications that require identity authentication.

EthCC confirmed Ethereum is the most active development ecosystem in crypto and analysts say renewed developer activity usually means long-term price appreciation.

Robinhood Launches Ethereum-Based Layer-2 Network

Adding to the sentiment, Robinhood is building a Layer-2 blockchain on top of Arbitrum’s rollup infrastructure. Although the network is still in development, it will support Ethereum staking, tokenized stock trading and perpetual crypto futures.

Robinhood’s integration into the Ethereum scaling stack is a big confidence signal. Robinhood’s stock rose 12% on the day of the announcement, reflecting strong investor confidence in its blockchain plans. Analysts believe Robinhood will onboard millions of new users into Ethereum’s L2 and drive real transaction demand.

Technical Breakdown: Bulls Test Resistance at $2,523

The ETH price surge also had technical merit. Between June 29 and June 30, ETH traded in a tight range from $2,438.50 to $2,523, up 3.47% on good volume. The big move was between 22:00 and 23:00 UTC on June 29 when ETH rose 2.9% on 368,292 ETH volume and briefly broke $2,500.

ETH found support at $2,438 where above average buying confirmed the base. The day’s high at $2,523 is now resistance and the 200-day MA is just above.

In the final hour of trading on June 30, ETH pulled back to $2,487.19. Traders are still cautious with overhead resistance. But the session closed at $2,519 so momentum continues as Asia opens its trading week.

With ETF inflows rising and the Ethereum roadmap accelerating, the overall picture is good. But the $2,525–$2,550 region is likely to be tough resistance in the short term.

If ETH closes above this range with volume, the next leg up could be $2,700–$2,750. If not, consolidation at $2,450–$2,500 is likely especially if macro factors like Fed rate guidance hit risk assets.

Conclusion: Is Ethereum Back in Bull Mode?

The recent ETH price surge is showing the underlying improvements: institutional capital is flowing back in, retail platforms like Robinhood are doubling down on Ethereum’s rollup tech, and core devs are pushing privacy and scalability upgrades.

A clean breakout above $2,525 on strong volume could take ETH to $2,700 and beyond. For now, Ethereum is reestablishing its footing at $2,500 and with the fundamentals aligning, long term investors are more confident than ever.

Summary

The recent ETH price surge is driven by strong ETF inflows, rising staking and ecosystem momentum. CoinShares reports $429M in weekly inflows and nearly $2.9B YTD into Ethereum funds. Over 35 million ETH is staked, reducing liquid supply. Robinhood announced a new Layer-2 blockchain on Arbitrum, solidifying Ethereum’s role in future fintech. At EthCC in Cannes, devs introduced ZK identity tools and scalability upgrades. 

FAQs

What’s behind the latest ETH price surge?

Institutional inflows, staking reducing supply, EthCC developer activity and Robinhood’s L2 plans.

Why is $2,500 important for ETH?

Psychological threshold and technical zone. Closing above with volume means bullish.

How much ETH is staked?

Over 35 million ETH is locked in staking contracts, about 28% of total supply.

What does Robinhood’s L2 mean for Ethereum?

More fintech adoption of Ethereum scaling infrastructure means more users and transactions.

Glossary

Layer-2 (L2): A blockchain on top of Ethereum to improve scalability and reduce fees.

Zero-Knowledge Proof (ZK Proof): A way to verify data without revealing the data itself.

ETF Inflows: Capital flowing into Ethereum funds, usually from institutions.

Staking: Locking ETH in a smart contract to secure the network and earn rewards.

200-Day Moving Average: A long term trend indicator.

Sources

CoinShares

CoinDesk

Robinhood

Barron’s