Vitalik Buterin Sells $13M ETH Amid Market Slide, Funds Biotech

On-chain data from Lookonchain reveals a detailed timeline of Vitalik Buterin’s Ethereum sales. Initial reports on February 5 indicated wallets linked to the Ethereum co-founder had sold 2,961 ETH over three days for about $6.6 million, at an average price near $2,228. Within 24 hours, that figure was updated to a total of 6,183 ETH sold for roughly $13.2 million, with the average exit price dropping to around $2,140 as ETH’s price continued to fall. Buterin publicly contextualized this move, stating on X that he withdrew 16,384 ETH to support work in biotech, secure hardware, privacy software, and other areas beyond Ethereum’s core protocol, framing it as part of a broader period of tighter spending at the Ethereum Foundation.

A notable aspect of this liquidation was the immediate philanthropic allocation of a portion of the proceeds. Buterin transferred approximately $500,000 from the sale of 212 ETH on February 2 to Kanro, an initiative tied to open-source biomedical research. Kanro Fund confirmed the transfer, stating the funds would support anti-airborne-disease and pandemic-related projects. This continues a pattern for Buterin, who has funded similar efforts for nearly three years, including a substantial $20 million personal contribution made in October 2025.

Buterin’s sales coincided with severe downward pressure on the entire cryptocurrency market, with Ethereum particularly hard-hit. The world’s second-largest cryptocurrency broke below the $2,100 level many traders viewed as key support, underperforming Bitcoin as risk appetite faded for altcoins. At the time of the report, ETH was trading around $1,900, reflecting a 7% loss in 24 hours and a staggering drop of more than 30% over the preceding week.

The selling pressure was not confined to individual actors like Buterin. A February 5 report from CryptoQuant highlighted significant institutional de-risking, showing U.S. investors were selling ETH at a discount. This activity pushed the Coinbase Premium Index—a metric tracking the price difference between Coinbase and other exchanges—to its lowest level since July 2022, a clear signal of heavy institutional selling pressure from the United States.

Lookonchain’s data painted a picture of a market where other large holders, or ‘whales,’ were also actively repositioning. On February 6, the analytics firm reported that Trend Research sold more than 170,000 ETH in under 10 hours, primarily to repay loans—a classic sign of deleveraging during a downturn. Similarly, Aave founder Stani Kulechov sold about 4,500 ETH near the $1,900 price point.

However, the market activity was not uniformly bearish. Amid the widespread selling, some entities saw opportunity at lower prices. The serial crypto investment group known as 7 Siblings bought 9,000 ETH for just under $2,000 per token as prices dipped, demonstrating that even during a sharp correction, strategic buyers are willing to step in. This dichotomy between large-scale selling for risk management and selective accumulation highlights the complex and volatile dynamics currently defining the Ethereum market.