Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has been in the limelight recently due to the sale of 950 ETH from an account linked to him.
These transactions have raised eyebrows among investors, who deemed the activity suspicious despite Buterin’s prior clarifications. Following the most recent sale, he provided further details, aiming to ease concerns within the community.
Concerns Arise Over Ethereum Founder’s Actions
In August, Buterin executed significant ETH transfers to a multisig wallet associated with him. This action alarmed investors, who feared that such a selloff could exacerbate selling pressure on the second-largest cryptocurrency in a fluctuating market.
According to Bitcoinist, on August 9, Buterin transferred 3,000 ETH, approximately valued at $8.04 million, to the multisig wallet. Twenty days later, he sent an additional 800 ETH, worth around $2.01 million, to the same wallet. The multisig subsequently swapped 190 ETH for 477,000 USDC.
In response to the news, criticism erupted within the crypto community, accusing Buterin of “bullposting while dumping” on investors. Others expressed a bleak outlook regarding ETH’s price trajectory, citing developers “dumping on us.”
Conversely, some investors argued that the backlash was unwarranted, indicating that it’s perfectly reasonable to take profits occasionally. Buterin countered these assertions, emphasizing that he does not sell tokens for personal gain.
In a post on X, the Ethereum founder explained that all sales made since 2018 aimed to support projects he deems valuable, including initiatives within the Ethereum ecosystem and charitable causes such as biomedical research and development.
A week later, he further clarified that this principle also applies to Layer-2 tokens and other project tokens in his possession, asserting that proceeds from those sales would be allocated to public goods.
Ethereum's performance in the weekly chart. Source: ETHUSDT on TradingView
Is Vitalik Finished with His Sales?
Despite his attempts to clarify the sales, concerns resurfaced within the crypto community following reports of another transaction. On September 11, on-chain data analytics firm Lookonchain reported that the multisig linked to Buterin had sold an additional 190 ETH that Wednesday morning.
The report indicated that this transaction, worth 441,971 USDC, was part of a series of sales. Since August 30, Buterin’s multisig has liquidated a total of 950 ETH, amounting to $2.27 million, at an average price of $2,396.
The 950 ETH liquidation occurred in five smaller transactions of 190 ETH each, spaced three days apart. Following the most recent sale, Buterin deposited the proceeds into the decentralized protocol Aave.
This news alarmed several users, prompting renewed criticism of Buterin for selling while simultaneously promoting the project. Additionally, doubts were cast on the accuracy of his earlier explanations.
In another post on X, he responded to investor concerns, elaborating on the latest transaction’s reasoning. Buterin stated that it resulted from an “automatic cowswap twap order” set up by a bio-defense initiative he supports.
Buterin clarifies his recent moves. Source: Vitalik Buterin on X
The order was established on August 29 but executed on Wednesday, suggesting the other four sales were arranged similarly. Buterin also mentioned that this would be “the last one,” reassuring investors that they need not fear further liquidations related to these orders.
At the time of writing, Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, is trading at $2,348, reflecting a slight increase of 0.2% in the past 24 hours.
Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com