During the current market turbulence Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has made a significant move, transferring 600 ETH to the U.S. exchange Coinbase.
Blockchain analysts have flagged the transfer of $1 million worth of Ether from a wallet associated with Vitalik Buterin, a notable figure in the cryptocurrency space. The transfer occurred on August 21, with the address still holding a substantial amount of over 3,900 ETH, valued at approximately $6.5 million according to data from Etherscan.
Further investigation by Lookonchain, a blockchain data analysis firm, revealed that the wallet labeled “vitalik.eth” repaid 251,000 Rai Reflex Index (RAI) tokens on the Maker platform and withdrew 1,000 ETH, equivalent to around $1.67 million. These transactions occurred just hours before the movement of ETH to Coinbase.
Confirming the transfer, blockchain analytics company Nansen also highlighted that Buterin had carried out a test transaction of 0.1 ETH two days prior to the significant movement. Nansen’s analysts noted that the exchange used for this recent transaction differed from previous instances on record.
The transfer of 600 ETH to Coinbase garnered attention across the cryptocurrency community, with prominent blockchain data aggregators and publications sharing insights and sparking speculation about the motivations behind the transaction.
Buterin’s move comes in the midst of a broader period of uncertainty in the cryptocurrency markets. Following a significant correction over the weekend, both Bitcoin and Ethereum experienced losses, with Bitcoin dropping 11% and Ethereum 8%.