**Ethereum Whale Makes a Big Move: 14,000 ETH Sold via Wintermute OTC**
In a noteworthy development, an early Ethereum whale has reportedly sold 14,000 ETH through the prominent crypto trading platform, Wintermute OTC. This transaction, valued at around $31.92 million, took place yesterday, February 27, at 22:58 (UTC). According to data from blockchain analytics platform Arkham Intelligence, the wallet user, identified as 0x95B…A90e7, executed the transfer in two separate transactions, each involving 7,000 ETH.
**Source of Funds**
It’s interesting to note that the 14,000 ETH came from a long-established Ethereum address, 0x035…8dFC7, which previously accumulated a total of 35,932 ETH. This early Ethereum address acquired its assets at an average price of $203.22 per coin between September 2016 and December 2018, amounting to a total investment of $7.3 million. Since then, the source address has been actively transferring funds to various blockchain wallets, some of which have also engaged with Wintermute OTC over the years.
**Whale Nets Over $29M in Profit**
Typically, crypto assets sent to Wintermute OTC are sold for stablecoins, indicating that this whale may have realized a profit of approximately $29.07 million from the sale of the 14,000 ETH. After the transaction, the wallet now holds a balance of 0.515 ETH, valued at $1,093. Meanwhile, the original source address still retains 49.562 ETH, worth about $105,140.
**Ethereum Sees Massive Selloffs**
This transaction comes at a time when the broader crypto market is facing significant downturns, causing anxiety among investors. Just yesterday, the Fear and Greed Index plummeted to a multi-year low of 10, signaling extreme fear in the market. This decline was largely driven by substantial selloffs, with whales and institutions offloading 8,074 ETH within a mere 13 hours at an average price of $2,431.
As investors were still recovering from this market dip, major asset manager BlackRock transferred 30,280 ETH, valued at $71.85 million, to Coinbase, hinting at possible sales. This move aligns with BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHE) reporting an outflow of $70 million. Other Ethereum spot ETF issuers, including Grayscale Investments and Fidelity, also experienced significant outflows this week, collectively selling $24.5 million worth of ETH tokens.
Currently, the Fear and Greed Index has risen slightly to 21 as the market begins to recover from yesterday’s selloff. At present, ETH is trading at $2,179, reflecting a decline of 5.91% over the past 24 hours and 22.33% over the past week.
