Ethereum (ETH), the second-ranked cryptocurrency by market capitalization, has been facing bearish pressure as its price plummets. ETH crashed below the critical support levels of $1,700 and $1,600 as the market continued to experience pressure from the trade tariff fallout.

As noted by CryptoQuant, a leading on-chain aggregator, Ethereum investors are at a significant loss, as most bought ETH at an average price of $2,200.

Meanwhile, the analytics platform said Ethereum's next major support level is $1,290. If the asset crashes to this level, investors will suffer a $910 unrealized loss tagged for people likely to sell.

As of press time, Ethereum's price has changed hands at $1,553.62, representing an 11.95% drop in the last 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap data. The asset plunged to a low of $1,473 in earlier trading after losing key price levels.

However, investors' interest in acquiring the asset due to its negative price has triggered a mild surge for Ethereum. As market participants buy the dip, the trading volume has surged by a staggering 570.91% to $52.37 billion.

According to CryptoQuant’s analysis, this increase in trading volume could have been triggered by investors looking to minimize their losses, which will largely influence their behavior on the market.

The leading on-chain platform maintained that $1,290 remains a strong price floor for the crash to halt. It noted that Ethereum could rediscover strong buying interest at this level.

Ethereum whale intervention and bearish projection

CryptoQuant also noted that Ethereum whales holding over 100,000 ETH could play a notable role in the coin’s recovery. When the price drops further, these whales will likely defend the price from further crashes by acquiring more assets and HODLing.

Market participants hope that Peter Schiff’s prediction concerning the Ethereum price will not come to pass. Notably, the renowned voice in the financial ecosystem predicted that ETH could plunge to $1,000, far below CryptoQuant’s floor target.