Recently, I came across a research report about Ethereum, and I found it really interesting. Etherealize, an Ethereum ecosystem company, put forward a bold prediction, setting a long-term target price for Ether at $250k. At first glance, that number sounds a bit crazy, but their logic is actually worth thinking through.

First, let’s talk about the background. Ether is currently hovering around $2,340, having pulled back quite a bit from the $4,946 peak set last August. Etherealize had previously called for a target price of $740k, and this time they revised it down to $250k. It looks conservative, but for the current market, it’s still an extremely ambitious figure.

What is their core argument? Rather than saying Ether is merely a digital asset, it’s more like it has a unique “superpower.” Bitcoin is digital gold, but Ether is different: it not only has the function of a store of value, but it can also generate real yields. This is all thanks to Ethereum’s proof-of-stake mechanism—holders can earn steady returns through staking, with the current annualized rate roughly in the range of 2% to 4%.

Here’s an interesting perspective. The combined monetary premium of global gold and Bitcoin is about $31 trillion. If Ether could capture the same premium, then based on its current circulating supply of about 121 million tokens, the price could indeed exceed $250k. But more importantly, Ethereum’s underlying ecosystem is still thriving with DeFi and stablecoin activity—these are real economic activities that can help protect the token’s price.

I think the most convincing line they make is this: Ether is the first money asset in history that has no counterparty risk yet can create compound interest. Indeed, traditionally, investors face a dilemma—either hold cash that’s stable but earns no return, or invest in productive assets that can make money but come with high risk. The emergence of Ether breaks this deadlock.

Now let’s look at the competitive landscape. New L1 chains like Canton, Tempo, Solana, and others are definitely on the rise, trying to challenge Ethereum’s position. But Etherealize’s view is that these competitors are, in essence, only execution layers and can’t be compared to Ethereum. They don’t have Ethereum’s sovereignty, and their level of decentralization falls far behind. Ethereum has already established itself as the settlement-layer leader in the tokenized assets, stablecoin, and DeFi domains, and that position is unlikely to be shaken in the short term.

Another detail worth noting is this: because Ethereum burns part of the transaction fees, the annual supply growth rate is limited to below 1.5%. As usage increases, inflation could even turn into something like deflation. By contrast, the issue Bitcoin faces is that once all 21 million coins have been mined, miners can only rely on transaction fees to maintain network security—an long-term risk that shouldn’t be underestimated.

Overall, this report offers a perspective worth considering: Ether is not just another crypto asset—it could be a more complete tool for storing value. Of course, going from $2,340 to $250k will take time, and the report doesn’t provide a specific timeline. But the market should definitely assess Ether’s potential with the same mindset used to evaluate Bitcoin.