Two early investors in Ethereum have moved a significant portion of their holdings, netting remarkable gains. On-chain analysis service Lookonchain reports that these investors deposited 9,518 ETH, valued at approximately $36.3 million, into Kraken, a prominent cryptocurrency exchange.
These investors participated in Ethereum's initial coin offering (ICO) at a price of $0.31 per ETH. The current price of Ethereum, at around $3,780 per ETH, marks an appreciation of 1,200,000%. Despite the recent deposit, they still hold a substantial amount of the 200,000 ETH they originally purchased, having initially spent $62,000, which has now ballooned to a value exceeding $750 million.
This move coincides with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approving form 19b-4 filings for several spot Ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs). This regulatory approval has had a significant impact on the cryptocurrency market, contributing to increased trading activity and confidence.
Ethereum has undergone notable changes, including its transition to a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus algorithm and the implementation of the London hard fork. These updates have influenced the network's transaction fee structure, particularly through Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) 1559, which aims to stabilise fees and burn a portion of the transaction fees. To date, over $16.6 billion worth of ETH has been burned since these changes were implemented.
Prominent crypto analyst Michael Nadeau has provided an optimistic analysis of Ethereum's future. He suggests that Ethereum could significantly outperform Bitcoin in the near term, given its ongoing improvements and network upgrades.
Early Ethereum investors have realised substantial gains, cashing out a portion of their holdings amid positive regulatory developments and significant network upgrades. These factors contribute to a promising outlook for Ethereum's future performance.