Ethereum price today: $4,460

• Ethereum core developers agreed on December 3 as a tentative date for the mainnet rollout of its next big upgrade, Fusaka.
• Fusaka features several improvements that aim to enhance data optimization, increase gas limit and expand blobspace on Ethereum.
• ETH could validate a cup and handle pattern if it holds the 50-day SMA support and clears a key trendline resistance.

Ethereum (ETH) dropped 3% on Friday amid plans from developers to launch the Fusaka upgrade by year's end.

Ethereum Fusaka upgrade set for December mainnet launch

Ethereum developers have set the year-end as the tentative date for its next major upgrade, Fusaka.

In its All Core Developers Consensus (ACDC) call #165 on Thursday, developers agreed to roll out Fusaka on the Ethereum mainnet on December 3, provided it doesn't encounter hiccups during the testnet upgrades.

The upgrade is set to launch on Holesky, Sepolia, and Hoodi testnets on October 1, October 14, and October 28, respectively, before proceeding to the mainnet launch.

Fusaka is Ethereum's next major protocol upgrade, consisting of 12 Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs). The upgrade features improvements that enhance data verification, optimize storage, increase the block gas limit, and improve smart contract execution.

Developers are also looking to expand the network's blob capacity through a series of upgrades after Fusaka goes live. "Blob capacity should more than double over the two weeks following Fusaka's activation," noted crypto researcher Christine Kim in a Thursday X post.

Blobs are temporary data packets from rollups stored within Ethereum blocks for a short period, which enhances scalability and reduces costs for Layer 2 chains.

The target and maximum blobs per block will initially increase from 6/9 to 10/15 in the first week after Fusaka and again to 14/21 a week after, Kim added.

Fusaka follows Ethereum's last major upgrade, Pectra, which shipped on the mainnet in May, introducing improvements to user experience, staking efficiency, and blob expansion, among others.

Despite the stated timelines for Fusaka, there's no guarantee developers will meet all the targets, considering potential challenges during testnet upgrades.

"The odds of the testnet upgrades going smoothly are 50/50, as there are still several bugs under investigation and fixes pending in Ethereum clients," wrote Kim.

Meanwhile, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin recently defended the network's validator queue design after the waiting time for investors unstaking their assets climbed to 43 days.

Ethereum Price Forecast: ETH cup and handle pattern highlights a potential rally to $5,300

Ethereum experienced $89.8 million in futures liquidations over the past 24 hours, comprising $83.5 million and $6.3 million in long and short liquidations.

ETH is retesting the 20-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) after facing a rejection around $4,620 on Thursday. If the top altcoin fails to hold the 20-day SMA, it could find support around the 50-day SMA near $4,300.

ETH/USDT daily chart

ETH will validate a cup and handle pattern if it bounces off these support levels and sustains a firm close above the trendline resistance extending from August 24. Such a move could push ETH to establish a new all-time high around $5,300 — a level obtained by measuring the height of the pattern and projecting it upward from a potential breakout point.

The Relative Strength Index (RSI) and Stochastic Oscillator (Stoch) are trending downward and testing their neutral levels, indicating a weakening bullish momentum.

A daily candlestick close below $4,200 will invalidate the thesis and potentially send ETH to find support around the $4,000 psychological level.