Ethereum (ETH) Faces Correction on Foundation Selloff

An Ethereum wallet belonging to the Ethereum foundation has just transferred 15,000 ETH to a Kraken deposit address. 

Almost simultaneously, one of Vitalik Buterin’s personal addresses moved a further 200 ETH to the exchange.

Is ETH Price About to Fall?

The first transaction, valued at just shy of 30 million USD at the time of writing, has fueled speculation as to why the foundation is on the move. 

The Ethereum Foundation has previously reported that it holds around 0.297% of the total ETH supply. At today’s market cap, that would put the value of the foundation’s ETH holdings at nearly 700 million USD.

In total, the foundation said that ETH accounts for 80.5% of its crypto and non-crypto holdings.

Many have quickly pointed out that previous large-scale ETH selloffs by the foundation have preempted market downturns.

ETH Foundation Times the Market

In November 2021, the foundation sold a cache of 20,000 ETH worth around $9.5 billion. This was swiftly followed by a major price correction as the market accommodated the increased circulation.

In hindsight, it also coincided with the beginning of the 2021 ETH bear market.

In fact, such selloffs by the foundation have long been connected to peaks in the ETH price cycle. And for followers of the market, both the foundation and its co-founder Buterin are closely watched for the timing of their sales, which have often been on the money.

Consider that in 2019, Buterin said in an interview that he had convinced the foundation to sell 70,000 ETH “basically at the top” of its price range at the time. He added that the decision had paid off and had allowed the foundation to double its funding runway.

Selloff Tops Otherwise Bullish Week for ETH

Of course, the news that the Ethereum Foundation is liquidating some of its assets doesn’t necessarily mean the price of ETH is about to tank.

On Saturday morning, there were no signs of any major turmoil in the market. And Ethereum bulls are still scrapping at the heels of the critical $2,000 mark.

Since the beginning of May, investors have been moving their ETH off exchanges and the total ETH supply on Exchanges reduced by 210,000 coins between May 1 and May 5.

There has also been a notable surge in whale accumulation across the Ethereum network since the beginning of the month, justifying a more bullish ETH price prediction. 

Moreover, there has also been an increase in ETH staked since the Shapella upgrade last month. This indicates that investors are happy to hold onto the asset for the long run, rather than seeing it as a short-term investment.

Ethereum Foundation Faces Major Costs

Sure, the Ethereum Foundation may have a track record for anticipating downtrends. But it also has costs to cover. And the latest selloff is still small compared to the one seen in 2021.

Certainly, the organization has been busy recently and has developers to pay. For example, in the first quarter of 2023, it allocated $4,370,418 across its various research, development, and community programs.

The foundation is also an active investor in the wider crypto ecosystem. In this role, it needs to be prepared to make high-value purchases.

Last year, the foundation took part in a $10.5 million Series A funding round for the workplace encryption startup Skiff. Skiff enables secure account creation and document sharing using an Ethereum wallet. 

Through the Ethereum Support Program, the foundation also offers grants to projects helping to build the Ethereum ecosystem.