Key Points
- Dormant Ethereum wallets from the ICO era have become active again, transferring holdings to new wallets across different exchanges.
- The crypto industry anticipates the approval of spot Ethereum ETF trading from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
In the wake of the expected approval for spot Ethereum ETF trading by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), there has been activity in several previously dormant Ethereum wallets.
These wallets, owned by Ethereum whales, are transferring their holdings to new wallets on various exchanges.
Ethereum Whales Transfer ETH to Kraken
Spot On Chain’s on-chain data reveals that two Ethereum whales from the Initial Coin Offering (ICO) era have transferred 3,631 ETH to the Kraken exchange.
This quantity of ETH, valued at approximately $12.5 million at the time of transfer, was moved to Kraken in separate transactions over two days. One of the wallets, labelled 0xdb3, transferred 2,631 ETH, valued at $9.01 million. Another wallet, 0xbf5, transferred 1,000 ETH, worth $3.46 million. This brought the total value of Ethereum transferred to $12.5 million.
Notably, the 0xdb3 wallet has been seen receiving Ethereum from both the Ethereum Foundation and ICO participant 0xAb0 over the years. From June 8 to the present, a total of 17,886 ETH, equivalent to $65 million, have been deposited by the “0xdb3” wallet to various Centralized Exchanges (CEX).
The other whale’s wallet received Ethereum from ICO participant 0x510. The owner of this wallet originally acquired 100,000 ETH during the Genesis event in 2015. After several transfers, including the recent movement of 1,000 ETH, the wallet still holds 49,000 ETH. Based on the current market value of 1 unit of Ethereum at $3,494.30 with a 2.31% increase within the last 24 hours, this holding is worth approximately $171.2 million.
Expectations for Spot Ethereum ETF Trading Approval Persist
The wider crypto industry is awaiting approval for spot Ethereum ETF trading. Although it was initially speculated that the Commission would approve the offering to go live on July 15, this did not happen. However, there is still hope that approval will come soon, with July 23 being the new proposed date for trading approval.
The Ethereum whale transfers may be a result of fears of volatility and a potential bearish run. However, Ethereum is currently showing a positive sentiment, with some analysts predicting that its price rally could extend to up to $4,500. Once spot Ethereum ETF trading goes live, the altcoin may see further upward trends.
Some market observers believe that Ethereum could even outperform Bitcoin in the long run. However, this does not rule out the possibility of a stall in the price of Ethereum or even a potential ‘sell the news’ scenario. For now, all eyes are on the Commission and its final decision on spot Ethereum ETFs.
