After nearly nine years of inactivity, a large Ethereum wallet has come alive again, prompting a renewed focus on “long-term whales” in the cryptocurrency market. On-chain data has revealed that a single address executed multi-million dollar Ether transfers directed toward a centralized exchange. This event coincided with recent weakness in Ethereum’s price and similar whale activities observed with Bitcoin. Market participants are closely watching the potential impacts of these transfers.
Ethereum Transfer Emerges from Nine Years of Silence
According to on-chain analyses, an Ethereum whale that had been inactive for a long time transferred a total of 50,000 ETH to the Gemini exchange on Sunday. This transfer, worth approximately $145 million, was made through two separate transactions on the same day. Initially, 25,000 ETH was sent, followed by the same amount hours later. The transactions were reported by EmberCN based on data from Arkham Intelligence.
The wallet address in question was noted to have not made any transactions since 2017. During that period, it withdrew around 135,000 ETH from the Bitfinex exchange, equivalent to approximately $12.17 million at that time. The withdrawal occurred when Ether traded around $90, highlighting how early investors secured positions at a lower cost.
Following the latest transfers, the wallet still holds approximately 85,283 ETH. Given current prices, this balance represents hundreds of millions of dollars. The high-volume transfer to a centralized exchange has sparked discussions about the possibility of a sale in the market.
Whale Movements and Market Pricing Impact
This development on the Ethereum side coincided with similar activity observed on the Bitcoin network in the same week. A Bitcoin address that had remained inactive for about 13 years recently moved 909 BTC to a new wallet. This amount, with a market value calculated at around $84 million, is under close scrutiny concerning market psychology as long-dormant addresses start transacting again.
On the pricing front, Ether continues to face downward pressure. According to CoinMarketCap data, ETH fell by 2.8% in the last 24 hours, retreating to a level of $2,859. During the same period, the price of Bitcoin also fell by 1.43%, trading at $87,611. While large-scale transfers do not always directly impact short-term price actions, market participants reevaluate risk perception based on such signals.
Analysts emphasize that the behavior of long-term whales alone will not be direction-determining, but it can increase volatility during times of weak liquidity. Transfers directed towards centralized exchanges particularly cause investors to adopt cautious positions.
