Originally published on: October 03, 2024
An Ethereum whale has once again rattled the market by offloading a significant amount of Ether tokens acquired during the blockchain’s initial coin offering back in 2014. The aggressive sell-off, totaling a staggering $47.5 million, has reignited concerns and doubts among investors.
According to onchain transaction analytics platform Lookonchain, the mysterious ICO participant has been gradually liquidating their massive ETH holdings over the past week. The recent wave of sales saw the entity dump 19,000 Ether, further dampening the already struggling market sentiment.
The selling spree started late last month when over 12,000 ETH, valued at $31.6 million, was sent to the Kraken exchange. Interestingly, the whale initially acquired 150,000 ETH during the 2014 ICO, which was worth around $46,500 at the time but is now valued close to $400 million.
In response to the whale’s actions, Ether prices experienced a nearly 10% decline since the beginning of October. From trading at $2,650 on Oct. 1, the cryptocurrency plummeted to an intraday low of $2,365 on Oct. 3, representing a substantial 3.7% daily drop, outpacing the broader crypto market’s 2.6% decline.
Moreover, the ETH/BTC ratio has dropped to 0.039, levels not seen since the mid-September market slump, indicating growing pressure on Ethereum’s valuation. This has reignited criticism and skepticism towards the asset, which has struggled to meet expectations this year.
Despite the negative sentiment, Ethereum enthusiasts continue to stand by the network’s potential. Many believe that ongoing network upgrades, such as account abstraction and authentication, will pave the way for mass adoption, attracting the next billion users.
On the institutional front, there are signs of renewed interest in Ethereum, with the spot Ether ETFs recently seeing a large influx of nearly $20 million, largely driven by BlackRock. This influx comes amidst a continued outflow from spot Bitcoin ETFs.
While the market remains volatile and uncertainties persist, Ethereum’s resilience and ongoing developments could be the key to sustaining its long-term growth.
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