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On Wednesday, hundreds of wallets were unlocked, and 2 billion dollars worth of Ethereum (ETH) seized by the Chinese in 2021 became active. This seizure took place following the crackdown of the Plus Token Ponzi scheme which was one of the biggest frauds.
Such a large amount of Ethereum has attracted the attention of the community, as it could affect the market.
The research firm Lookonchain said that these wallets have moved about 789,533 ETH, worth approximately $2 billion. The funds were received from a wallet associated with the Plus Token Ponzi scheme, which sent ETH to other addresses in 2020 and had not been active since April 2021.
According to Lookonchain, a large number of wallets that have been dormant for 3.3 years are transferring 789,533 ETH (about $2 billion). The funds came from a wallet called "Plus Token Ponzi 2". These ETH were seized by Chinese police when they cracked down on the PlusToken…
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) August 7, 2024
The sudden activity in these wallets was detected about four hours before the report, raising speculations about the reasons behind the transfers.
Details of the Ethereum Transfer
The Ethereum reserve was seized by the Chinese police as part of the efforts to crack down on the Plus Token Ponzi scheme.
The Plus Token scheme claimed to offer returns on investments made in crypto cheating investors out of billions of dollars. After the crackdown, many digital assets, including Ethereum, were seized by the authorities.
Recent movements point towards the Chinese government possibly beginning to act towards the seized crypto assets.
According to the on-chain data from EtherScan, the wallets in connection with the Plus Token scam transferred huge amounts of ETH to numerous addresses. This change has raised concerns about a possible large sell-off of Ethereum and other cryptos in the market.
Ancient Ethereum Whale Reawakens With 806,351% Profits
Additionally, an Ethereum ICO participant has reawakened after nine years of dormancy. According to Lookonchain, this address, which participated in Ethereum’s ICO in 2014, was activated for the first time in almost a decade.
The address received 500 ETH during Ethereum’s pre-mining sale in which one ETH was sold for $0.31. Today, the value is estimated to be approximately $1.25 million making a return of 806,351%.
Lookonchain observed that the dormant address made a 0.1 ETH transfer to a new address which could be a test transaction. This has raised questions as actions from such big holders can affect the price of Ethereum.
An #Ethereum ICO participant woke up just now after 9 years of dormancy.
— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) August 6, 2024
This guy participated in the #Ethereum ICO 9 years ago and received 500 $ETH(cost was only $155, now worth $1.25M), and the ICO price was $0.31.
He transferred 0.1 $ETH to a new address just now, which may… pic.twitter.com/4f0W7oCJMd
Market Reactions and Future Outlook
Ethereum liquidity and price movements are still a concern for investors and traders. Any such large transfer of ETH, particularly if followed by more liquidations, may cause a price fall.
Following the recent decline, Ethereum was able to break through the $2,550 level. However, the above activities brought in new risks.
In the last 24 hours, Ethereum saw a fall in value, dropping to $2,351.09, a 6.40% decrease. Trading volume declined by 13.68% with a total of $23,921,536,155, and market capitalization declined by 6.44% to $282,739,526,076.