Ethereum co-founder Lubin predicts: within a year, ETH market capitalization will surpass Bitcoin! Fundstrat is bullish up to $30,000, institutions are ramping up their accumulation of "digital oil".

Ethereum ( ETH ) co-founder Joseph Lubin ( Joseph Lubin ) boldly predicts that ETH market capitalization may surpass Bitcoin ( BTC ) within the next year, with the core logic being that corporate treasury buyers accelerate allocation and Ethereum matures as the "decentralized economic digital oil" ecosystem. Fundstrat co-founder Tom Lee ( Tom Lee ) is also bullish, proposing three major catalysts (stablecoin regulatory clarity, SEC promoting on-chain finance, and institutions like JPMorgan directly building positions) that may drive ETH to challenge the $30,000 high. Lubin calls the current moment the "broadband popularization moment" for Ethereum, where the convergence of technology, usability, and regulatory clarity will ignite mainstream adoption. Vitalik Buterin's holdings value has returned to $1 billion, the macro environment has shifted to a "raging bull" cycle, and the passage of the Genius Act stablecoin bill together lays the foundation for ETH's market capitalization reversal.

[Giants Predict: ETH Market Capitalization Reversal is Imminent] Joseph Lubin, the co-founder of Ethereum, firmly believes that ETH is expected to surpass Bitcoin's market capitalization within the next year. In an interview with CNBC, he pointed out that the core driving force behind this transformation is the increasing adoption by treasury buyers, as well as the continued maturation of the Ethereum ecosystem, which he refers to as the "digital oil" of the decentralized economy.

Rubin describes the current development stage of Ethereum as a "broadband moment"—the key juncture where scalability, usability, and regulatory clarity converge to pave the way for large-scale mainstream adoption. Coincidentally, Fundstrat co-founder Tom Lee also holds a similarly bullish view and explicitly points out specific catalysts that could push ETH from its current level to $30,000 or higher within the same timeframe.

[Institutional Treasury Tide and Three Core Catalysts]

• Rubin on Institutional Allocation: "If Bitcoin is valued at $20 trillion, what geometric value will the global economy built on the Web3 track empowered by decentralized trust have? In about a year, we may witness astonishing changes, especially driven by companies building treasury allocations." Rubin, who also serves as chairman of betting technology company Sharplink Gaming, stated that more and more companies are following Michael Saylor's MicroStrategy strategy on Bitcoin and are building Ethereum treasury funds. He believes this trend may accelerate Ethereum's position as a core reserve asset for public and private institutions.
• Tom Lee's Three Catalysts: Lee compares Ethereum's current trajectory to Bitcoin's explosive growth in 2017 fueled by the "digital gold" narrative. He proposed three key factors driving ETH's surge:
  1. Stablecoin Regulation Approved: Stablecoins that receive regulatory approval will greatly enhance the compliance and attractiveness of the Ethereum ecosystem.
  2. SEC Promotes On-Chain Finance: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is promoting the initiative of putting traditional finance on-chain.

3. Direct Construction by Giants: Major financial institutions like JPMorgan and Robinhood are directly building products and services on Ethereum. "Ethereum is the intersection of Wall Street and cryptocurrency - and now it is also the intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) and tokenized economies," Li emphasized, reflecting the fusion of decentralized finance (DeFi), artificial intelligence, and tokenized infrastructure. Li also pointed out that Ethereum's staking model offers a yield advantage compared to Bitcoin's pure deflationary design. He estimates that a treasury company like BitMine, which mimics the MicroStrategy model and focuses on Ethereum, could generate over $100 million in net income annually just from staking if it holds $3 billion worth of ETH.

[Market Recovery and Macroeconomic Tailwind]

• Vitalik Buterin Returns to "On-Chain Billionaires": The recent rise of Ethereum has brought its co-founder Vitalik Buterin back into the ranks of on-chain billionaires. According to Arkham Intelligence, Buterin currently holds 240,042 ETH, valued at approximately $1.04 billion. ETH surged over 6% on Saturday, closing at $4,332, marking the first time it has closed above $4,000 since last December.
• "raging bull" cycle begins: The macro environment is also showing favorable trends. Morgan Stanley's Chief Investment Officer Mike Wilson recently announced the end of a rolling recession lasting three years, and the stock market "raging bull" cycle has begun. Li pointed out that Bitcoin has always been a leading indicator for the stock market, indicating that an increase in risk appetite in the stock market may spill over into digital assets, thereby raising Ethereum valuations.
• Regulatory Milestone: The "Genius Act": Rubin mentioned that the recently passed "Genius Act" is another catalyst. This legislation provides legal clarity for stablecoins in the U.S., making their deployment on Ethereum smart contract infrastructure more attractive. He believes that this, combined with a decade of technological development, has prepared Ethereum to integrate into the mainstream of the global economy.

[The Path Beyond: ETH vs BTC Market Capitalization Game]

• Target Price Level: Based on Bitcoin's current market capitalization, the price of Ethereum needs to approach $20,000 to surpass the total value. Some analysts, including Fundstrat's Sean Ferrell, believe that the ETH/BTC exchange rate could rebound to the 2021 peak of 0.14, which, based on the current Bitcoin price, would make the value of ETH approximately $16,000.
• "Ethereum Killer" is Not Worrisome: Lubin downplayed the concerns about the so-called "Ethereum Killer." He pointed out that although other platforms have launched with innovative features, none can match Ethereum's scale, developer talent pool, or maturity. "There has never been an ecosystem as large, talented, and mature as Ethereum. Bitcoin is a different case, but Ethereum is the functional backbone of Web3."
• Institutional Strategic Shift: Institutional strategies have begun to align with this view. Sharplink Gaming, chaired by Rubin, aims to become the largest corporate holder of ETH, positioning itself as the "MicroStrategy of Ethereum." This reflects a broader trend of companies focused on treasury management viewing Ethereum as a strategic reserve asset.

Li believes that as more and more Wall Street builds on Ethereum and the network becomes the preferred platform for tokenized assets, the gap between ETH and BTC could quickly narrow. With Ethereum approaching its tenth anniversary and continuing to expand in the DeFi and enterprise application sectors, Rubin sees the coming year as a critical turning point—the long-speculated "market capitalization flippening" may become a reality sooner than many expect.

Conclusion: The joint bullish outlook of Ethereum core leader Joseph Lubin and Wall Street's top analyst Tom Lee injects strong optimism into ETH's challenge against Bitcoin's dominance in market capitalization. Institutional treasury allocations are accelerating (following the MicroStrategy model), three core catalysts (stablecoin regulation, on-chain finance advancement, and major players directly building positions), and the macro "raging bull" cycle collectively form the strategic support for ETH's assault on the $20,000-$30,000 target. Although surpassing Bitcoin's market capitalization requires ETH to reach nearly $20,000 (current increase of about 3.7 times), Lubin emphasizes Ethereum's "functional pillar" status and ecological maturity, providing the underlying logic for its long-term value in the Web3 and tokenized economy wave. Investors need to closely monitor institutional holding data, ETH/BTC exchange rate breaking the key level of 0.08, and regulatory dynamics to seize this potential "market capitalization flip" opportunity. Whether Ethereum's "broadband universalization moment" can truly usher in a new era of trillion-dollar market capitalization will be determined in the decisive battlefield of the next 12 months.