Ethereum hits new all-time high, surpassing its 2021 peak on Coinbase

ETH surged nearly 15% in 24 hours after Powell’s Jackson Hole remarks hinted at a September rate cut

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byEditorial Team
Aug. 22, 2026

Ethereum finally did what its most loyal holders have been waiting nearly four years to see. On August 22, ETH broke past its previous all-time high on Coinbase, touching a range of $4,866 to $4,885 and eclipsing the roughly $4,878 mark set during the euphoric days of November 2021.

The catalyst wasn’t a new DeFi protocol or a Vitalik Buterin keynote. It was Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, speaking at the Jackson Hole symposium, dropping the kind of hint that makes risk assets do backflips: a potential interest rate cut in September.

The Powell effect

Powell’s comments at Jackson Hole landed like a match in a room full of dry tinder. Within 24 hours of his remarks, ETH ripped nearly 15% higher. Bitcoin, by comparison, managed a more measured gain of around 4%.

Shortly after the initial breakout, ETH continued climbing. Various data providers reported the absolute high reaching the $4,946 to $4,953 range, pushing even further into uncharted territory.

Why this time feels different from 2021

The last time ETH was trading at these levels, the world looked very different. November 2021 was the peak of a cycle fueled by near-zero interest rates, stimulus checks, and a general vibe that number-go-up was a permanent state of affairs. What followed was a brutal bear market, the collapse of Terra/Luna, the FTX implosion, and a prolonged period where crypto felt more like a crime scene than an asset class.

This rally has a different foundation. ETH entered 2025 already up 45% year-to-date before the latest surge. The network itself has undergone fundamental changes since 2021, most notably the transition to proof-of-stake, which dramatically reduced ETH issuance and energy consumption.

Institutional interest has also evolved considerably. Treasury accumulations by corporations and growing inflows into ETH-based ETFs suggest that the buyer base for Ethereum has matured well beyond the retail-driven speculation that characterized the previous cycle.

What this means for markets

For traders, the 15% single-day move represents exactly the kind of volatility that creates opportunity, and risk. The gap between ETH’s performance and Bitcoin’s more modest 4% gain also raises the question of whether Ethereum can sustain this outperformance or if the premium will compress.

Institutional inflows into ETH-based ETFs will be the metric to watch in the coming weeks. If fund flows accelerate alongside the price breakout, it would suggest this move has staying power beyond the initial macro-driven spike. If flows remain flat or decline despite the new high, it could indicate that the rally is running on retail enthusiasm alone, a pattern that has historically been less durable.

Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.

Source: cryptobriefing.com