Major investors in Ethereum, often referred to as “whales” in the cryptocurrency world, appear to be capitalizing on a successful year to profit, according to data analysis by blockchain intelligence service Lookonchain.
The investor reportedly bought a large amount of Ether a year ago at a price of around $1,890 per token and initiated a series of trades in the past week that hinted at profit-taking.
Whale first withdrew 12,906 ETH, worth about $24.39 million at the time, from Binance, a major cryptocurrency exchange. The tokens were then deposited into his Lido, a platform where users can earn interest on their holdings through liquid staking. This means that users can earn interest by staking their ETH while receiving liquid his tokens representing staked assets that can be used elsewhere.
This move may indicate an investor's intention to hold the asset for the long term while earning passive income. However, on April 30, coinciding with the market decline, the whales withdrew 7,000 ETH from Lido and redeposited the funds into Binance, so their actions suggest a change in strategy.
This quick transfer suggests investors were looking to take advantage of potential short-term price fluctuations.
The total profit on the 7,000 ETH sold is likely more than $16 million, according to the blockchain analysis service, highlighting the huge profits the whale has made since its initial purchase.
The price of the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization has fluctuated wildly over the past week, dropping from around $3,250 to a low of just over $2,850 before starting to recover to its original starting point. Since then, the cryptocurrency has started to fall sharply, with ETH currently trading below $3,100 once again.
Year-to-date, the cryptocurrency has gained more than 35%, benefiting from a broad recovery in the crypto market that saw the flagship cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, rise more than 50% during the same period.
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