Ethereum (ETH), the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, is experiencing major changes in its ecosystem. From large sell-offs by early investors to network upgrades and changing market dynamics, the Ethereum landscape is rapidly evolving.
Early investors release large ETH holdings
Ethereum whales that initially received 150,000 ETH through the project’s initial coin offering (ICO) have resumed selling their holdings. Crypto analyst EmberCN reports that the whale recently moved 5,000 ETH worth approximately $12.22 million to the Kraken exchange.
The transfer is part of a large-scale selling activity in which the whale released 45,000 ETH over the past two weeks, amounting to approximately $113.2 million at an average price of $2,516 per ETH. The history of whale sales reveals a pattern of strategic withdrawal.
July 2019: Sold 5,000 ETH for $1.09 million ($218 per token) June 2024: Liquidated 10,000 ETH for $35.39 million ($3,539 per token) September-October 2024: 45,000 ETH for 1 Sold for $13.2 million (average price $2,516)
Despite such a large sale, the whale still holds 94,540 ETH, worth approximately $230.3 million at current market prices. This remaining balance includes 4,540 ETH attributable to staking income earned through platforms such as Lido and Rocket Pool.
Dencun upgrade impact and market performance
The recent Dencun upgrade had a major impact on the Ethereum network, leading to record low fees and a surge in Layer 2 (L2) transactions. This upgrade also caused Ethereum inflation, marking a reversal from the recent deflationary trend.
Despite this change, Ethereum’s market performance remains bullish. As of this writing, ETH is trading at $2,476.41 and has a market cap of over $298 billion. This price increase benefited more than 9 million Ethereum addresses, representing more than half of all Ethereum addresses.
On-chain data reveals that Ethereum’s foreign exchange reserves are decreasing, indicating increasing buying pressure and could signal a bullish trend. However, technical analysis suggests a mixed outlook, with the 20-day simple moving average (SMA) acting as resistance on the daily chart and the MACD showing a bearish edge.
Ethereum maintains dominance in white hat hacker ecosystem
Ethereum continues to be the blockchain of choice for crypto hackers, with 87% supporting it, according to a report by Immunefi. However, other blockchain networks such as Polygon, Arbitrum, Optimism, and Solana are also gaining traction.
The report highlights that improper input validation has become a major problem, with the percentage of all vulnerabilities targeted by white-hat hackers increasing from 9% to 47%. Meanwhile, reentrant attacks decreased from 43% in 2023 to 16% in 2024.
