Early Ethereum investor awakens $1.5M wallet after a decade

One of Ethereum’s earliest investors reportedly moved a stash worth around $1.5 million today, after originally investing just $104 over a decade ago, according to blockchain analytics platform Lookonchain, which has been tracking the wallet.

After this massive gain, the investor held 334.7 ETH in the original wallet. While the plan was to transfer all Ethereum to a new wallet, on-chain data showed that a small test transaction was conducted first.

The investor has yet to decide how to use the new wallet. Analysts estimate that if the entire holding is sold at today’s prices, the return would be roughly 14,269 times the initial investment. The investor remains anonymous.

Analysts highlight increasing adoption of Ethereum globally 

The Ethereum ICO, akin to a traditional Initial Public Offering (IPO), began in 2014, with the ETH network officially launching in 2015. Since then, Ethereum has become the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, trailing only Bitcoin, and this year marks its tenth anniversary.

Following the incident about the early Ethereum investor, research from sources has revealed that several well-funded wallets that remained dominant for a long time have just recently been activated. A good example is a Satoshi-era investor who transferred significant funds to approximately $9 billion worth of Bitcoin.

After the transfer of the digital asset was done, Galaxy conducted the sale. At that time, the price of Bitcoin was stable.  In the meantime, reports from CoinMarketCap highlight that Ethereum is currently trading at $4,419, demonstrating a 1.33% decrease in the past 24 hours.

On the other hand, US-based spot ETH ETFs recorded impressive results, marking the best influx and magnitude in history. The influx was around  $2.9 billion, and the trading volume nearly matched when compared to Bitcoin funds.

BlackRock’s ETHA fund inflows hit headlines after amounting to 338.1 million

Last week, U.S.-based Ethereum ETFs recorded a historic trading volume of roughly $18.2 billion, marking their highest ever. This nearly matched Bitcoin ETFs, which posted a trading volume of about $21.2 billion.

In addition to trading activity, Ethereum funds saw strong weekly inflows of approximately $2.9 billion in new capital. Although the broader ETF market experienced a net outflow of $59.3 million, BlackRock’s ETHA fund, the iShares Ethereum Trust ETF, attracted about $338.1 million in fresh investments.

Analysis from SoSoValue shows that these gains were partially offset by outflows elsewhere, including Fidelity’s FETH at $272.2 million and Grayscale’s ETHE at $101.7 million, along with smaller withdrawals from 21Shares’ CETH, Grayscale’s ETH, and Bitwise’s ETHW.

Nonetheless, BlackRock’s ETHA fund enjoyed ten consecutive days of inflows, highlighting its continued strength. The fund now manages around $15.7 billion in assets, representing roughly 2.9% of Ethereum’s total market capitalization.

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