- Ethereum plunges to $1,540, stirring dormant $ETH from old wallets.
- Vitalik Buterin’s compromised account coincides with Ethereum’s market dip.
- Signs of capitulation emerge as Ethereum faces market and security turmoil.
Amid concerns that the crypto market may enter a new downturn, Ethereum, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency, has recently exhibited signs of vulnerability. Market analysis by Santiment, a crypto market intelligence platform, indicates Ethereum dipped to $1,540, a rate unseen since March.
🐳 #Ethereum dropped to $1,540 for the first time since March 12th, and this coincided with large quantities of stagnant $ETH moving away from old wallets. A continued dip in mean $ age while prices drop is a capitulation sign, which foreshadows reversals. https://t.co/50jK2C7aLi pic.twitter.com/4RhtlVX3rr
— Santiment (@santimentfeed) September 12, 2023
Additionally, large swaths of inactive Ethereum have started moving out of old wallets, potentially signaling an upcoming market reversal. These dynamics followed shortly after an alarming security breach involving Ethereum’s co-founder, Vitalik Buterin, which led to nearly $700,000 in losses.
After weeks of stagnant behavior, a massive shift in previously dormant Ethereum from long-held wallets has raised eyebrows. With a decline in the mean age of $ETH, Santiment’s data suggests this could be a sign of capitulation. Usually, capitulation is considered a precursor to market reversals, either bullish or bearish. At the time of writing, Ethereum was trading at $1,579.73 with a 24-hour trading volume of over $8.6 billion, reflecting a 2.21% drop in the last day alone.
With Bitcoin trading at around $25,760 and a 24-hour volume of approximately $17.6 billion, Ethereum remains second in the list of top cryptocurrencies by market cap, which currently stands at roughly $189.9 billion. Data analytics firm Arkham revealed a compelling mix of market participants in the Ethereum ecosystem, including exchanges, active whales, and even a permanently destroyed wallet, accentuating the complex landscape that investors navigate.
The biggest accounts on Ethereum have some very interesting stories to tell.
Arkham’s Top ETH Entity list contains exchanges, active whales and even a permanently destroyed wallet 😱
Let’s take a look. pic.twitter.com/PKNFskVNLJ
— Arkham (@ArkhamIntel) September 9, 2023
Adding another layer of concern is the recent compromise of Vitalik Buterin’s social media account on platform X. According to blockchain investigator ZachXBT, victims lost over $691,000 by clicking on a malicious link that promised a free NFT.
Bok Khoo, a renowned Ethereum developer known online as Bokky Poobah, confirmed he had suffered significant losses in his CryptoPunk NFT collection due to the incident. Buterin’s father, Dmitry, later confirmed the hack, warning users to disregard any posts from his son’s compromised account.
