Bitcoin [BTC] has been on a wild ride for four months into 2026. After experiencing volatility in March, the leading cryptocurrency rebounded in April. Although the year started well, Bitcoin fell to a low of $65,000 in March.
Only in April did Bitcoin manage to break $70,000, and by May it had surpassed $80,000. On the contrary, Ethereum’s price fell to $1,943 in March, but recovered to $2,421 in April. At the time of writing, it was trading at $2,388.
Ethereum vs Bitcoin
While the price patterns seem quite similar, recent analyzes from CryptoQuant indicate that Ethereum’s supply-demand structure [ETH] and Bitcoin differed.
At the time of writing, Bitcoin’s Coinbase Premium Index indicated that institutions, not just retailers, were responsible for the April rally.
Similarly, Ethereum also flashed signs of strong support from institutions, even as BTC gained more preference in capital allocation.
At the same time, Bitcoin’s Exchange Netflow chart showed more outflow spikes – a sign of continued accumulation and reduced supply on the sell side.
XWIN, a Japanese DeFi asset management platform, commented:
BTC’s rally was supported by both strong demand and limited supply.
For its part, however, Ethereum has been more affected by erratic exchange flows, with short-term movements determined by changes in supply. Instead of demand-driven growth, ETH has so far had a reactive, supply-driven structure.
Once again, XWIN, a Japanese DeFi asset management platform, noted:
If ETH begins to show sustained spot demand similar to that of BTC, broader altcoin participation could follow. Until then, Bitcoin’s dominance will likely continue.
Will BTC overtake Ethereum again in Q2 2026?
Here it is worth noting that this coincided with the ETH/BTC ratio of 0.02934, after a decline of 4.37% from the previous month. This suggested that ETH has become less strong in relation to BTC.
Simply put, institutions and retailers alike are prioritizing Bitcoin over Ethereum.
This difference between the two was also evident in 2025. While Ethereum focused on what the network could achieve, Bitcoin focused on being stronger.
In fact, AMBCrypto’s latest report supported this narrative, with the same finding that Bitcoin is strong enough to beat Ethereum for the rest of the second quarter.
Final summary
- The price movements of Ethereum and Bitcoin have followed similar patterns, but the on-chain metrics have shown divergent patterns.
- The ETH/BTC ratio also indicated that Bitcoin will beat Ethereum in the second quarter of 2026.