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Ethereum’s ongoing underperformance against Bitcoin has reignited statement implicit what’s holding the plus up, and who’s truly down its demand.
According to Bitcoin advocator Samson Mow, astir $6 cardinal successful South Korean retail wealth is present propping up alleged Ethereum treasuries, companies accumulating ETH arsenic a balance-sheet plus echoing MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin strategy. Mow issued the assertion successful an Oct. 5 post connected X, arguing that “ETH influencers” person been flying to Seoul to tribunal retail traders chasing the adjacent “strategy play.”
According to CoinMarketCap, arsenic of Oct. 6, ETH has slipped astir 1.9% successful the past 24 hours and is down astir 5% against Bitcoin implicit the past month. That weakness, Mow suggested, exposes however short-term retail enthusiasm, alternatively than organization conviction, is sustaining Ethereum’s valuation.
Data from the Strategic ETH Reserve shows that 67 entities, including BitMine and SharpLink, collectively clasp astir 5.49 cardinal ETH (roughly $25 billion), oregon 4.5% of the full supply.
Table showing Ethereum treasury companies with the 20 largest ETH reserves connected Oct. 6, 2025 (Source: Strategic ETH Reserve)Mow attributed overmuch of this vulnerability to South Korean retail investors known locally arsenic seohak gaemie, claiming they’ve funneled astir $6 cardinal into Ethereum treasury companies. He argued that promoters person been selling these firms arsenic the “next MicroStrategy,” luring traders seeking casual analogs to Bitcoin’s firm accumulation playbook:
“Many of these investors person zero thought astir the ETH/BTC illustration and deliberation they’re buying the adjacent strategy trade.”
He warned that enthusiasm built connected “financial illiteracy” could backfire, particularly arsenic Ethereum continues to lag down Bitcoin successful comparative performance.
Ethereum’s terms show reflects the concern. Despite periodic inflows and renewed communicative pushes, ETH has remained capped beneath its erstwhile all-time precocious of $4,946 and continues to weaken against Bitcoin. The ETH/BTC ratio has fallen by implicit 5% successful the past year, reinforcing the cognition that overmuch of the enactment for Ethereum’s marketplace headdress is narrative-driven alternatively than based connected cardinal maturation oregon organization adoption.
Graph showing the ETH/BTC ratio from Oct. 6, 2024, to Oct. 6, 2025 (Source: TradingView)Mow’s critique aligns with comments from Mechanism Capital co-founder Andrew Kang, who has besides formed uncertainty connected the fiscal logic down Ethereum-based treasuries. Kang pointed to projects similar Tom Lee’s BitMine arsenic examples of “undisciplined treasury models” that deficiency the fiscal operation seen successful palmy Bitcoin-holding firms. “The technicals for Ethereum are bearish,” Kang said, adding that ETH’s semipermanent scope could stay betwixt $1,000 and $4,800 without a large alteration successful fundamentals.
Kang concluded that Ethereum’s valuation “comes chiefly from fiscal illiteracy,” comparing its speculative momentum to XRP’s humanities rallies. He argued that portion retail hype tin prolong a ample marketplace headdress for immoderate time, it’s not a durable base: “The valuation that tin beryllium derived from fiscal illiteracy is not infinite.”
Whether Korean retail request becomes a caller structural pillar for Ethereum, oregon the past gasp of a fading narrative, whitethorn beryllium connected however agelong the “ETH treasury” communicative tin outrun the chart.
The station Are South Korean retail traders the lone happening keeping Ethereum treasury companies alive? appeared archetypal connected CryptoSlate.
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