At the peak of the market during the massive bull run of 2017, the Ethereum Foundation liquidated 70,000 ETH. Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin convinced the foundation to sell at that time.
The price of ETH peaked at $1,400 during January of 2018, which would have netted approximately $100 million from the sale. Buterin also disclosed a personal sale of 30,000 ETH at the same time.
Money Management
Buterin’s disclosure statement indicated that the sale had helped the Foundation remain solvent. He specifically said that $100 million would “extend the runway” for the work of the foundation.
According to some Twitter followers, the sale was a wise use of Foundation resources.
Securing $100M USD to fund future #Ethereum development. Sounds like good treasury management to me. https://t.co/n4cJG8H3j6— Chris Burniske (@cburniske) December 15, 2019
Not surprisingly, many do not see the decision in quite the same light. While Buterin personally profited, and the Foundation also made money, and many lost.
Particularly considering the general FOMO in the market at the close of 2017, many see Buterin’s actions as self-serving. Investors who lost substantial amounts of money were left holding the bags of the founder.
The losses over the past nearly two years have been dramatic. Assuming they held the coins, investors who bought Buterin’s ETH have lost more than 80% of their investment.
Overall Market Changes
The losses are, of course, substantial. Other coins also lost much of their value over the course of the same time. Even Bitcoin buyers at that time lost a dramatic amount of money, with the price currently at just 30% of the all-time high.
However, in spite of the overall market loss, the disclosure from Buterin may well cause bitterness. Certainly, the additional funds will help keep the Foundation afloat. Ethereum investors and believers may well find the decision to sell at the peak as more of a “sell-out.”
Ethereum recently had its upcoming upgrade, Istanbul, though Ethereum 2.0 might not come for some while, as BeInCrypto has previously reported.
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