Ethereum extended its summer rally on Friday, climbing to about $4,200 and breaking above $4,000 for the first time since December 2021. The token rose roughly 10 % on the day, is up 170 % since April and now sits only about 14 % below its all-time high, lifting its market value to roughly $506 billion. The surge has widened Ethereum’s outperformance versus Bitcoin, with the ETH/BTC ratio doubling from April lows. Some analysts say the momentum could carry the second-largest cryptocurrency to a fresh record and even $10,000 by year-end, pointing to expectations that U.S. stable-coin regulation will accelerate on-chain activity. Large holders have been active around the move. Former BitMEX chief Arthur Hayes repurchased Ether after selling 2,373 coins for about $8.3 million last week, transferring $10.5 million in USDC to exchanges to rebuild his position. ShapeShift founder Erik Voorhees realised $27.4 million by selling 6,581 ETH at $4,161, while Ethereum co-founder Jeffrey Wilcke sent 9,840 ETH—worth roughly $41 million—to Kraken in his first sizeable deposit in three months. Traders are now watching the $4,250 level, a technical barrier last tested in late 2021. A decisive break could open the way to all-time highs, potentially spurring broader gains across alternative tokens that historically track Ethereum’s performance.