Ethereum is holding above its most important support level while failing to reclaim the first meaningful resistance. The gap between those two prices is where the current setup lives.
What the Chart Shows
At the time of writing, Ethereum is trading at $2,040 on the one-hour Binance chart, down 0.37% on the hour. The chart covering March 21 through the morning of March 23 shows the same breakdown pattern visible across all major assets this weekend. Price opened Saturday above $2,150 before the large red candle on Saturday evening drove it toward $2,028, the session low. The subsequent recovery attempted to reclaim $2,100 through Sunday but failed to hold that level, with each rally producing a lower high before fading back toward the current $2,040 area.
The 50-period simple moving average at $2,097 sits above current price with a clear downward slope, confirming that the short-term trend has been bearish since the breakdown. Price has not closed above the moving average since Saturday evening’s sell-off. That level now acts as the immediate overhead reference alongside the $2,097 reading, which sits directly adjacent to the first MVRV resistance band identified by analyst Ali Charts at $2,356.
The RSI at 14 periods reads 38.52, with its signal line at 36.49. Both readings sit in weak territory below the neutral 50 level. The momentum reading has partially recovered from its oversold extreme reached on Saturday night but has not crossed back above the signal line with any conviction, indicating that buying pressure has been insufficient to restore directional momentum on the hourly timeframe.
The MVRV Pricing Band Framework
Analyst Ali Martinez published an Ethereum MVRV pricing band chart sourced from Glassnode on March 23, identifying five key price levels derived from the market value to realized value ratio’s statistical bands. Each band represents a specific deviation from the mean realized price, translating on-chain cost basis data into actionable price levels.
The most important support level in the current setup is $1,655, the lowest band on the chart corresponding to the negative 1.0 standard deviation level below the mean realized price. Ethereum trading at that level would indicate the average holder is significantly underwater, a condition that has historically marked cycle lows. Current price at $2,040 sits approximately 19% above that floor, meaning capitulation-level conditions have not been reached.
For Ethereum $ETH, these are the MVRV Pricing Bands that will act as our roadmap:
• $1,655: The most important support level.
• $2,356: The first major resistance to reclaim.
• $2,647 / $3,639: Mid-term breakout targets.
• $4,632 / $5,624: Long-term "expansion" zones. https://t.co/BDiUteQrYS pic.twitter.com/Z18HTPUDkd— Ali Charts (@alicharts) March 23, 2026
The first major resistance to reclaim is $2,356, the band immediately above current price. That level represents the boundary between the lower portion of the MVRV range and the mean zone. Reclaiming $2,356 on a closing basis would signal that Ethereum has moved back into a structurally neutral position relative to its realized price distribution and would open the path toward the mid-term breakout targets.
Those mid-term targets sit at $2,647 and $3,639, the mean and positive 0.5 standard deviation bands respectively. Above those levels, the long-term expansion zones at $4,632 and $5,624 represent the upper portions of the MVRV band structure where Ethereum has historically traded during peak cycle conditions.
What the Current Position Means
Ethereum at $2,040 is trading between the $1,655 support floor and the $2,356 first resistance level, approximately 23% above the floor and 16% below the first resistance. That positioning places it in the lower portion of the MVRV band structure without being at an extreme. The chart from Ali Charts shows the ETH price line descending toward the $2,356 band through February and March before breaking below it in the recent correction, with the current price sitting just below that former support level which has now become resistance.
The sequence of events required for a constructive resolution is straightforward in the framework. First, price needs to hold above $1,655 on any further weakness. Second, reclaiming $2,356 confirms the correction has ended and the mean MVRV zone has been reestablished. Third, continuation toward $2,647 and $3,639 requires demand-side catalysts beyond technical structure alone. None of those steps have been completed yet. The current setup is defined by where Ethereum sits between the levels, not by which direction it is heading.
