Ethereum

In February 2026, the Dubai Land Department launched the second phase of its real estate tokenization pilot after roughly $5 million in property was tokenized into about 7.8 million tradable tokens. Infrastructure partner Ctrl Alt will issue Asset-Referenced Virtual Asset management tokens on the XRP Ledger, with Ripple Custody securing onchain transactions, while DarGlobal and Trump-backed World Liberty Financial plan to tokenize the development phase of a Trump-branded resort in the Maldives through Securitize.

According to a recent analysis by Fortune, Bitcoin and Ethereum are enduring one of their toughest year openings on record, with Bitcoin about 46% below its all-time high and Ethereum roughly 60% under its peak. Since January, the S&P 500 is up approximately 0.4%, the Dow Jones has gained 2.3%, and gold and silver have advanced around 17% and 14%, underscoring a divergence from crypto.

On Feb 18, 2026, Coinbase said it will leave Optimism’s OP Stack to develop a "unified stack," according to Bankless. The move follows a prolonged slump, with OP down 97% from its March 2024 ATH, and as Base has supplied ~97% of Superchain revenue. Ether.fi plans to migrate ~70,000 active cards and ~300,000 accounts to OP Mainnet over the coming months.

Vitalik Buterin pushed back against an X user's suggestion to abandon Ethereum's base chain, outlining a tightly integrated "bolt-on" rebuild that keeps the network live. He described a cypherpunk-focused redesign that grows alongside the current chain, and said a roughly five-year timeline could be shortened with AI-assisted coding and verification.

Following a drop toward $1.8K, Ethereum has moved into a choppy range and a 4-hour triangle squeeze is nearing its apex. Key resistance sits at the 0.5 Fib at $2,396, with upside levels at $2,549 and $2,658–$2,767 if reclaimed, while a downside break could revisit the $1,800–$1,746 base.

On 20 February 2026, the Ethereum Foundation outlined a shift to two network upgrades per year, beginning in 2026. The plan prioritizes scaling, improved user experience, and stronger L1 security, with a gas limit target of 100M+ and named upgrades Glamsterdam in H1 and Hegotá in H2.

According to CryptoQuant, Ethereum derivatives have seen sharp deleveraging, with aggregate open interest sliding from $33.3 billion to about $11 billion, a 66% decline. CoinGlass also tracked roughly $189 million in 24‑hour liquidations as price moved toward $1,900, while exchange balances reached a multi‑year low of 16.1 million ETH.

About 30,600 Bitcoin options with roughly $2 billion notional are expiring on Friday, Feb. 20. Coinglass places max pain near $70,000 and Deribit cites a 0.59 put/call ratio; another 212,000 Ethereum contracts worth about $404 million also roll off. Spot markets remain range-bound, with Bitcoin near $67,290 after a $65,700 weekly low.

Altcoin momentum has improved, yet multiple market signals indicate a broad altcoin season has not started. BTC dominance remains under a key threshold while ETH/BTC’s rebound has not shifted the larger trend, and recent exchange activity indicates capital still leans toward Bitcoin rather than Ethereum and other large-cap networks.

Ethereum price recently slipped below $1,950 and then rebounded from support near $1,905, with the recovery capped under $1,980. ETH is now moving below the 100-hourly Simple Moving Average and facing resistance around $1,985 and the $2,000 level. A break above $2,000 could open the way toward $2,050, while failure to clear $1,985 may trigger another drop toward $1,880 or even $1,840.