Asia Morning Briefing: Institutional Buying Boosts ETH Toward $3K While AI Agents Turn to Crypto Rails

Published: June 12, 2025

CoinDesk reports that institutional interest in Ethereum (ETH) is gaining momentum, pushing ETH closer to the $3,000 mark and cementing its position in derivatives markets. Meanwhile, the rise of autonomous AI agents is reinforcing the need for crypto-native infrastructure coindesk.com+7coindesk.com+7instagram.com+7.

📈 Key Highlights

ETH Outpacing BTC in Derivatives:
On OKX's perpetual futures market, ETH now represents 45.2% of trading volume versus 38.1% for BTC. Institutional traders are favoring ETH as a gateway between DeFi and traditional finance coindesk.com.

Price Performance & Outlook:
ETH has surged nearly 11% this month, compared to BTC’s 5% rise. With strong institutional conviction, analysts suggest $3,000 ETH is increasingly likely x.com+7coindesk.com+7coinstats.app+7.

Institutional BTC Accumulation:
Despite volatility, institutions continue buying BTC dips. Glassnode reports long-term holders realized $930M profit daily during rallies, yet holdings climbed—indicating strong accumulation pressure treasury-management.comcoindesk.com.

Stablecoin Market Expands:
Total stablecoin supply has reached a record $228 billion, driven in part by Tron’s rapid integration and inflows—highlighting evolving capital flows coindesk.com.

Rise of AI Agent Economies:
As AI agents evolve to autonomously complete tasks, they require crypto rails for seamless interaction. The article emphasizes that “these AI agents are trapped in silos and need crypto to get them out”instagram.com+5coindesk.com+5x.com+5.