Ethereum Slips as Vitalik Buterin Moves 5,493 ETH, Trend Research Dumps 30K ETH

Ethereum faces renewed selling pressure today as investors weigh whether to buy the dip or continue liquidating holdings after the crypto market crash. The dip comes as on-chain activity ETH selling by Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin and Trend Research, fueling bearish sentiment.

Ethereum Co-Founder Vitalik Buterin Sold ETH

Ethereum creator Vitalik Buterin continues to sell his ETH holdings. He sold 493 ETH worth $1.16 million, Lookonchain reported on February 3. This comes following a 211.84 ETH selloff for 500,000 USDC.

On-chain data revealed that Buterin also converted more than 5,000 ETH to WETH. He is likely preparing to sell these tokens to support the Ethereum ecosystem. While the transfer isn’t larger, the timing of selling his ETH holdings amid the crypto market crash sparked panic.

Vitalik Buterin confirmed withdrawal of 16,384 ETH to fund open-source security, privacy projects, and a “full stack” of verifiable tech during the Ethereum Foundation’s “mild austerity” phase. Funds are slated for gradual deployment over the years, rather than immediate sales that could spark short-term volatility concerns.

Trend Research Continues to Liquidate ETH Holdings

In addition, Trend Research deposited 30,000 ETH on Binance today, further fueling Ethereum selling pressure. According to Onchain Lens data, the firm has sold 93,588 ETH in total in the last few days for sales and loan repayments amid leveraged positions.

Arkham revealed that Jack Yi’s Trend Research has lost $400 million. The Ethereum whale began dumping significant ETH onto Binance to avoid liquidation. Their ETH exposure is down to $1.33 billion from almost $2 billion last month. Notably, the liquidation price range for Trend Research’s holdings is between $1,781 and $1,862.

Ethereum Slips After Over 6% Rebound

Ethereum price pared earlier gains to currently trade near $2,320. It saw much-needed bounce as traders and whales buy the dip. Notably, DBS Bank has accumulated 24,898 ETH within a week as Ethereum price crashed more than 30% to below $2,200.

The 24-hour low and high are $2,158 and $2,393, respectively. Furthermore, trading volume has decreased by 15% over the last 24 hours, indicating a decline in trader interest. Ethereum price needs to reclaim above the 200-week moving average at $2,451 to confirm an uptrend.

Analyst Daan Crypto Trades highlighted that ETH/BTC failed to hold the 0.032 level. He claims the bearish sentiment rose as the October 10 whale lost $110 million in a single day. He predicts that the 0.026 and 0.03 levels are the range to watch now.

Moreover, CoinGlass data showed selling activity in the derivatives market in the past few hours. At the time of writing, the total ETH futures open interest was down almost 1% to $28.16 billion in the last 4 hours. XRP futures open interest on CME dropped nearly 1% and 0.40% on Binance, indicating mounting selling pressure in the past few hours.