Ethereum Market Faces Pressure as Major Whale Continues Massive ETH Selloff
In a worrying turn of events for the Ethereum (ETH) market, a prominent whale has offloaded an additional 5,000 ETH, contributing to a broader trend of significant sell-offs. Initially acquiring 1 million ETH during the Ethereum ICO at a mere $0.31, this whale has been actively liquidating their holdings. The recent sell-off has amplified market concerns, with Ethereum’s price struggling around $2,500 and experiencing a notable 4% drop in the past 24 hours.
Whale’s Ongoing ETH Dumping Spree
Today, the whale deposited another 5,000 ETH, valued at approximately $13.2 million, into the OKX crypto exchange. This transaction is part of a series of large-scale ETH dumps by the whale, who has deposited a total of 48,500 ETH, worth around $154 million, into the exchange over the last month.
The whale’s activities have triggered alarm within the Ethereum community due to the escalating volume and frequency of their dumps. The whale’s sell-off strategy began on July 8, 2024, with the sale of 1,000 ETH. Since then, the volume has steadily increased—from 1,500 ETH to 2,000 ETH, then to 2,200 ETH, and eventually to 2,800 ETH. Most recently, the whale has executed three consecutive deposits of 5,000 ETH each. This aggressive offloading approach has contributed to the Ethereum price dropping over 4% to around $2,500 today.
Concerns are mounting over the potential for further price declines as the whale still holds a substantial 951,500 ETH, valued at approximately $2.41 billion. The possible impact of such a large amount of ETH entering the market could significantly destabilize its price.
Potential Price Decline Below $2,800?
Market participants are now observing whether the bulls can push ETH back toward the $3,000 mark. However, technical indicators are raising red flags, as noted by Coingape. A potential “death cross” between the 50-day and 200-day exponential moving averages (EMAs) suggests that selling pressure may increase in the near future.
This bearish technical pattern could drive ETH’s price down to $1,830. Adding to the pessimistic outlook, Ethereum long liquidations have surged, with long positions worth $33.28 million being liquidated, alongside $11.88 million in short positions. The scale of these liquidations highlights the elevated risk of further downward movement in ETH’s price.
On a positive note, spot Ethereum ETFs saw significant inflows of $105 million last week due to strong early performance. Nevertheless, the week ended with three consecutive days of outflows, reflecting mixed sentiment in the ETF market. Analysts from QCP Capital have also noted a shift in focus toward Bitcoin ETFs.
Ethereum and the Plus Token Ponzi Scheme
Amid the Ethereum ICO whale’s offloading, recent movements of ETH by the Chinese government have stirred speculation. On August 8, it was reported that wallets holding seized Ethereum from the Plus Token Ponzi scheme moved $2 billion worth of ETH.
According to EmberCN’s investigation, a significant amount of Ethereum—totaling 789,534 ETH—was transferred to the Bidesk exchange from June to September 2021. Following Bidesk’s bankruptcy later that year, these assets were redirected to the Huobi exchange, with 268,843 ETH funneled through four specific deposit addresses.
Interestingly, some of these Ethereum assets were never transferred to Bidesk in 2021, while others withdrawn from Bidesk have yet to be moved to Huobi. Further findings indicate that 12 addresses related to the Plus Token Ponzi scheme received a combined $63.1 million in last week’s transfer. Notably, the whale dumped 5,000 ETH on the same day.
EmberCN suggests that the Chinese government likely sold a major portion of the 789,534 ETH in 2021. Therefore, the recent transfer of approximately $63 million in ETH may not significantly impact the market. However, combined with the massive whale sell-off, increased long liquidations, and diminishing interest in ETH ETFs, caution remains warranted.
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