Coinbase hacker dumps 3,976 ETH at a $932K loss

The Coinbase hacker is in panic mode just two days after purchasing 3976 ETH. The hacker has sold the same amount of ETH that he bought for $17.98 million, resulting in a loss of $932K. 

As reported by Cryptopolitan, the hacker who stole over $300 million from Coinbase initially bought 3,976 ETH for $4,756 per token, which translated to over $18.9 million. According to Lookonchain, the hacker has sold the tokens for $4,522 per token, translating to nearly $1 million in just two days.

Hacker exchanges Ethereum for DAI

Arkham Intelligence shows that the Coinbase hacker sold all the  ETH for DAI. The main reason such a crypto criminal would want to swap the funds into a stablecoin is to avoid the price volatility of the crypto market and make easier payments. DAI, in these cases, becomes particularly useful for criminals, just like any other stablecoin.

The hacker who stole $300M from #Coinbase users just panic-sold 3,976 $ETH($17.98M) at $4,522, losing $932K in 2 days.https://t.co/wBiAHo37jt pic.twitter.com/tIEo1Zrkyx

— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) September 15, 2025

However, due to its decentralized nature, DAI does not have a central authority that can freeze assets or blacklist addresses. Once DAI is in circulation, it is controlled entirely by the holders of the tokens, and no central entity can intervene in transactions.

Tether (USDT), USD Coin (USDC), TrueUSD (TUSD), and Pax Dollar (PAX) are on the complete opposite side of the spectrum. For instance, USDT is issued by Tether Limited, a centralized company that controls the issuance and redemption of the token. This centralization introduces points of failure and regulatory scrutiny.

As a centralized entity, Tether Limited is subject to regulatory oversight and must comply with various legal and financial regulations. Tether Limited can freeze USDT tokens on certain addresses and/or blacklist the address. This makes DAI the better option for scammers.

Whales’ big ETH withdrawals

At the same time, the crypto market has seen heightened activity. On-chain data shows that Ethereum “whales” have been moving ETH worth more than $20 million from platforms like Binance, FalconX, Kraken, and Bitget.

Whales keep accumulating $ETH.

Another newly created wallet "0x9D99" withdrew 5,297 $ETH($24.7M) from #Binance and #Bitget.

Whale 0x7451 received another 13,322 $ETH($61.65M) from #FalconX an hour ago.https://t.co/d79rEsIGOI pic.twitter.com/mmxcZimSEY

— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) September 15, 2025

Today, Lookonchain has reported several big withdrawals. A new wallet called 0x4d43 took out 4,208 ETH, worth about $19.5 million, from Binance in just 40 minutes. 5,297 ETH worth $24.7 million were taken from Binance and Bitget by a new wallet – 0x9D99. A different whale account, 0x7451, moved about $61.6 million worth of Ethereum from FalconX.

Kraken had the biggest move, with wallet 0x9d2E taking out about $102 million worth of ETH. The Ethereum whale accumulation adds up to over $208 million.

A wave of liquidations in the futures market caused the drop in prices. Over the last 24 hours, over $108 million worth of ETH has been sold on CoinGlass. About 86% in long positions have been wiped out.

Another driving factor is the regulatory uncertainty that is affecting the market sentiment.BlackRock took longer than expected to decide if it can add staking to its Ethereum ETF. The decision has been pushed back to October 30 by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The due dates for similar plans from 21Shares and Grayscale have also been pushed.

At the time of writing, ETH is trading at $4,522, which represents a 1.57% drop in the last 24 hours. The token had soared up to over $4,700 earlier in the session before it retreated. 

The overall market data for Ethereum ETFs paints a clear picture of growth. By September 12, the total net inflows reached $13.36 billion. Meanwhile, total net assets stood at $30.35 billion. Trading activity was also strong. About $2.55 billion in value was exchanged in a single day last week. 

The performance also shows that Ethereum ETFs are building solid ground alongside Bitcoin ETFs. This creates more opportunities for institutions and retail investors to gain exposure to crypto through regulated channels, and also promises investors that the price of Ethereum will keep going up.

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