EthereumPoW (ETHW) Price Prediction 2026 and 2030 - A Detailed Forecast

EthereumPoW (ETHW) Future Price Prediction - Bullish and Bearish Market Scenario

To provide a comprehensive price prediction and projections for EthereumPoW (ETHW), we will analyze bullish and bearish market scenarios and their possible reasons.

EthereumPoW (ETHW) Price Prediction - Bullish Market Scenario

EthereumPoW, usually referred to as ETHW, is the proof of work fork of Ethereum that continued with mining after the main Ethereum network switched to proof of stake in 2022. At the start of 2025, ETHW trades at about $0.5254535000896065 with a market capitalization close to $56.65 million. That places it deep in the small cap segment of the crypto market, a space where volatility is high but upside can be significant if a strong narrative and real usage emerge.

To frame a bullish scenario, it is useful to understand its economic base. EthereumPoW follows a similar supply model to pre Merge Ethereum. The circulating supply today is roughly comparable to the original Ethereum supply at the time of the fork, a little above 107 million coins, which is consistent with the reported market cap at the current price. That implies that if ETHW were to return to a multi billion dollar valuation, as some early post fork speculators had hoped, the resulting price per coin could potentially move sharply higher even without aggressive changes to tokenomics.

The wider crypto market has also been expanding again. As of early 2025, global crypto market capitalization is back in the multi trillion dollar range, supported by Bitcoin institutional adoption, the approval of multiple spot exchange traded funds and growing interest from both retail and professional investors in diversified digital assets. In such an environment, speculative flows into high beta, low cap coins can be intense during bullish phases.

A constructive outlook for ETHW rests on several pillars. First, there is the possibility that proof of work advocates continue to push for a censorship resistant, battle tested smart contract chain that looks and feels like pre Merge Ethereum. While Ethereum itself has the brand advantage and dominant developer mindshare, there is a niche of miners, infrastructure providers and users who prefer proof of work for philosophical and security reasons. If this niche consolidates around ETHW, it could give the chain a clearer identity.

Second, macroeconomic and geopolitical conditions can play an important role. Prolonged currency instability in certain regions, ongoing conflicts that encourage capital flight and continued concern about capital controls may all help crypto adoption more broadly. Under such conditions, any chain that can credibly host stablecoins and basic decentralized finance protocols can attract users in search of alternatives to the banking system. EthereumPoW is technically capable of running many of the same solidity based applications as pre Merge Ethereum, so it has the potential to host simplified versions of decentralized exchanges, lending and other financial tools if developers decide to port them.

Third, miner economics could become a surprising catalyst. If Bitcoin and other proof of work assets rally strongly and legacy GPU or ASIC infrastructure remains underutilized, mining communities will keep searching for additional revenue streams. A wave of coordinated support from mining pools and large miners for ETHW, perhaps combined with fee market redesigns, could boost network activity, improve security and gradually stimulate a speculative narrative around a revitalised proof of work smart contract chain.

In an optimistic scenario for the period from 2025 to 2028, one can imagine that the total crypto market grows well beyond its current size, that Ethereum maintains its blue chip status while some capital rotates into hedges against potential censorship or governance controversies, and that a handful of proof of work focused developers decide to build niche applications exclusively on EthereumPoW. That would still be a modest story compared with mainline Ethereum, but even modest stories can have outsize price impact for a coin that starts at a market cap under $100 million.

If EthereumPoW simply manages to reach a market capitalization around the lower end of mid cap territory, for example between $1 billion and $2 billion in the next one to three years, that would represent a significant rerating from today. With a supply in the region of 107 to 110 million coins over that period, it would translate into a potential price band between about $9 and $18 in a strong risk on phase. This would assume that crypto markets remain favorable, that ETHW listings remain available on major exchanges and that no critical security incidents undermine confidence in the chain.

Over three to five years, if the bullish thesis fully develops, the numbers can become even more striking, albeit highly speculative. A scenario where EthereumPoW grows into a consistent venue for proof of work secured decentralized applications, captures a stronger presence in regions where mining infrastructure is abundant and cheap, and perhaps hosts one or two popular protocols or stablecoin ecosystems could push its market capitalization further. At a market cap between $2.5 billion and $4.5 billion, assuming a supply in the range of 115 to 120 million coins due to gradual issuance, the implied long term price band could move into roughly $21 to $38.

These bullish projections rely on an alignment of many supportive factors. Regulation would need to remain permissive enough to allow mining, exchanges would have to maintain or increase support, users would need tangible reasons to transact on EthereumPoW rather than on Ethereum, layer two networks or other alternative chains, and the community would need to avoid contentious internal splits. While such a path is uncertain, it is not impossible in an industry famous for narrative driven capital flows and rapid repricing when sentiment flips.

EthereumPoW (ETHW) Price Prediction - Bearish Market Scenario

A sober assessment of EthereumPoW must also consider the bearish case. The chain competes against not only Ethereum itself, which now dominates smart contracts with proof of stake, but also against a crowded field of alternative layer one networks and rollups that offer lower fees, richer ecosystems and deeper liquidity. In a market where attention is scarce, survival is not guaranteed for every fork.

The primary structural risk for ETHW is gradual irrelevance. If developer activity continues to thin out, if total value locked in applications remains negligible and if most major protocols refuse to port to the chain, then EthereumPoW could drift into a purely speculative asset with no underlying usage. Under such conditions, periods of price excitement would likely diminish in frequency and strength, while each new market downturn would find the coin at a lower base.

Another key risk is regulatory and environmental pressure against proof of work. Several regions have already signaled discomfort with energy intensive mining. If more jurisdictions adopt stricter rules on proof of work, or if electricity subsidies disappear in countries that host much of the current mining base, then maintaining a secure and profitable mining ecosystem for EthereumPoW becomes more difficult. That would translate into weaker hashrate, increased vulnerability to attacks and a further erosion of user confidence.

There is also the operational risk of security incidents. As a smaller network with a relatively modest hashrate and a limited economic footprint, EthereumPoW is more exposed to potential 51 percent attacks, deep chain reorganizations or other exploits that can damage its reputation. A major security event affecting major exchanges or large holders could trigger a sudden collapse in liquidity and long lasting stigma.

At the macro level, a prolonged risk off environment in global markets would weigh heavily on small cap crypto assets. If interest rates remain elevated for longer, if equity markets experience a deep correction or if policy makers clamp down on speculative trading, then capital would tend to flow back into perceived quality, that is Bitcoin, Ethereum and possibly a handful of large caps. Lower tier assets like ETHW would likely underperform or simply bleed out slowly over multiple years.

In a mild bearish scenario over the next one to three years, where crypto remains cyclical but EthereumPoW fails to capture any significant new usage, the coin might oscillate mostly on speculative trading without structural demand. With the current price a little above fifty cents, a return to lower valuations that reflect waning interest could see ETHW trade in a broad band between $0.10 and $0.40 during market downturns or in the absence of hype.

If conditions worsen, for example because of stricter regulation of proof of work, delistings from some major exchanges or an incident that undermines trust in the chain, the downside could deepen. Over a three to five year period, it is not difficult to model scenarios where ETHW loses most of its value relative to today. Under persistent selling pressure, negligible liquidity and a shrinking miner base, the price could drift towards the lower cents. That would correspond to a market capitalization of only a few million dollars even with supply continuing to grow slowly.

While such outcomes may sound extreme, history shows that many forked chains that lack a differentiated value proposition eventually fade into the long tail of the crypto market. Prices can remain technically alive but economically insignificant. For EthereumPoW, much depends on whether the community can maintain even a minimal degree of relevance and whether miners, exchanges and users see strategic value in keeping the chain active.