Ethereum is on course to finish September with a net gain of as much as 9.76%, although the final result remains unsettled. At $2,712.51 on September 29, ETH was tracking its strongest September since 2016, when it gained 13.3%, reversing a historical pattern in which the token lost an average 8.57% during the month. The move above $2,700 broke earlier bearish chart structures, while ETH held around 0.032 BTC and recovered faster than the leading coin. ETH took months to recover from the October 10, 2025 liquidation event, and nearly a year later traders remain more optimistic but cautious about declaring a full bull market. ETH is being watched for a possible move above $5,000, with open interest back above $18 billion and spot demand reducing exchange reserves. Sentiment stands at 55 points, down from greed levels recorded during the previous week. On Hyperliquid, ETH open interest rose 2.46% and moved above $3 billion in notional value, surpassing BTC positions, while trading volume reached $1.2 billion. BTC continues to record more than $2.2 billion in daily volume. More than 65% of Hyperliquid whales hold long positions, compared with an average of 57% across other markets. The largest ETH position is a $283 million short, which has generated $2.6 million in funding fees as funding rates remain positive. ETH liquidity extends from $2,500 for long positions to $2,900 for short positions. Wintermute has deployed $126 million in short positions, including $46.92 million in ETH short open interest, producing unrealized gains and $402,000 in funding fees. Spot demand has also strengthened, with one anonymous whale accumulating $31 million in ETH from OKX and Binance into a self-custodied address. Accumulation addresses now hold more than 23 million ETH, while 35.72% of the supply, or more than 43 million ETH, is staked. Sharplinkg Gaming recently staked 42,072 ETH, and treasury companies collectively hold 8.49 million ETH, much of it designated for staking. Bitmine holds more than 6 million ETH and plans to stake most of those coins.