Thomas Daniels
Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum, responded on Saturday to criticisms concerning the sale of his Ethereum (ETH) holdings. He clarified that any ETH transactions since 2018 have been made to support projects he deems valuable, either within the Ethereum ecosystem or for broader charitable causes.
“All sales have been to support various projects that I think are valuable, either within the Ethereum ecosystem or broader charity,” Buterin stated in an August 31 post on X.com, formerly known as Twitter.
Buterin cited donations towards biomedical research and development as examples of his philanthropic efforts.
Buterin Addresses Allegations
Recently, Buterin transferred 800 ETH, valued at approximately $2.01 million, to a multisignature wallet. Of this, 190 ETH was converted into 477,000 USD Coin (USDC), a stablecoin pegged to the U.S. dollar. This activity sparked speculation within the crypto community, with some assuming that Buterin was liquidating his ETH holdings. This was the second significant transfer from Buterin’s wallet in August, following a move of 3,000 ETH, worth $8.04 million at the time, to the same multisignature wallet on August 9.
Buterin emphasized that none of his ETH sales were for personal gain. He clarified that when ETH from his wallet is transferred to exchanges, it is typically the recipients of his donations, not him, who are selling the assets.
“If you see an article saying ‘Vitalik sends XXX ETH to [exchange],’ it’s not actually me selling; it’s almost always me donating to some charity or nonprofit or other project, and the recipient selling because, well, they have to cover expenses,” he explained.
Commitment to Ethereum and Philanthropy
Buterin holds approximately 90% of his net worth in ETH, signaling his strong belief in Ethereum as a store of value. His philanthropic track record further underscores his commitment to using his wealth for broader societal benefit. For instance, Buterin donated 199 ETH (about $517,000) to ethOS, a mobile operating system based on the Ethereum blockchain, as reported by Crypto.news.
According to data from Lookonchain, Buterin has sold over 85,000 ETH (valued at $209 million) from his wallets over the past three years, though this figure is disputed by some observers.
In addition to his recent donations, Buterin contributed 200 ETH to the Effective Altruism Funds, an animal welfare initiative, on August 15. Notably, in 2021, he made a substantial donation of over 50 trillion Shiba Inu (SHIB) tokens, valued at more than $1 billion at the time, to the India Covid Relief Fund, a charity set up by Polygon co-founder Sandeep Nailwal.
