Key Takeaways
- • Lookonchain data showed an early Ethereum holder sold 3,000 ETH worth over $7.2 million on October 23, 2026, having bought the tokens nine years earlier at about $18.83 apiece for a return of roughly 128x to 130x.
- • Multiple long-dormant early ETH wallets have moved holdings to exchanges or sold recently, including a 6,369 ETH deposit to Kraken worth about $16 million and a 13,330 ETH transfer to Coinbase worth over $36 million in October.
- • A 2015 ICO participant who acquired 170,000 ETH at $0.31 per token has been moving its holdings, and an earlier ICO investor sold 2,000 tokens for $3.77 million in August after buying at $622.
- • ETH rose from under $2,000 to $2,800 in a few months before retreating to $2,300 in a market-wide pullback and recovering to about $2,400 at press time.
Summary
Some of Ethereum's earliest investors have been taking profits, according to on-chain data reported by CryptoPotato on October 23, 2026. Blockchain analytics firm Lookonchain noted on Friday that an Ethereum OG sold 3,000 ETH, worth over $7.2 million at the time, after acquiring the tokens nine years earlier at under $19 apiece. The position, initially about $56,000, generated a return of nearly 130x, which Lookonchain put at 128x based on the sale price.
The transaction follows a series of recent moves by some of the oldest wallets in the crypto industry, including addresses dormant for roughly a decade. Earlier in October, another early ETH holder deposited 6,369 ETH, worth about $16 million, to Kraken after accumulating the position at $14 per token. During October, an Ethereum ICO participant also moved 13,330 ETH, worth well over $36 million, to Coinbase. That wallet originally obtained 170,000 ETH in the 2015 ICO at $0.31 per token.
The transfers come as ETH's price has been volatile. The token rose from under $2,000 to $2,800 within a few months before its advance stalled. It fell to $2,300 during the most recent market-wide pullback and had recovered to about $2,400 as of press time. In August, another ICO investor transferred all 2,000 of its tokens, worth $3.77 million at the time, to Coinbase, roughly 11 years after buying them for $622, an increase of more than 6,000x.
The transaction follows a series of recent moves by some of the oldest wallets in the crypto industry, including addresses dormant for roughly a decade. Earlier in October, another early ETH holder deposited 6,369 ETH, worth about $16 million, to Kraken after accumulating the position at $14 per token. During October, an Ethereum ICO participant also moved 13,330 ETH, worth well over $36 million, to Coinbase. That wallet originally obtained 170,000 ETH in the 2015 ICO at $0.31 per token.
The transfers come as ETH's price has been volatile. The token rose from under $2,000 to $2,800 within a few months before its advance stalled. It fell to $2,300 during the most recent market-wide pullback and had recovered to about $2,400 as of press time. In August, another ICO investor transferred all 2,000 of its tokens, worth $3.77 million at the time, to Coinbase, roughly 11 years after buying them for $622, an increase of more than 6,000x.
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