Ethereum ICO Participant Waits 9 Years to Cash Out

An Ethereum ICO participant resurfaced on Tuesday, moving a large chunk of his investment to a new wallet. The early investor’s reemergence comes on time for the network’s ninth birthday.

ICO, short for initial coin offering, differs from a project’s launch date. During an ICO, the project issues digital tokens or coins for sale to investors in exchange for funding.

Ethereum ICO Participant Resurfaces

Lookonchain reported the transaction on Tuesday, indicating that the early investor transferred 1,111 Ethereum (ETH) tokens worth $3.7 million to a new wallet. This address received 2,000 ETH tokens during ICO.

“An Ethereum ICO participant woke up after 9 years of dormancy and transferred 1,111 ETH ($3.7M) to a new wallet. He received 2,000 ETH ($6.67M) at Ethereum Genesis, the ETH ICO price is ~$0.31,” Lookonchain reported.

Read more: How to Buy Ethereum (ETH) and Everything You Need to Know

The ICO participant’s transaction comes on the Ethereum network’s ninth birthday, following the project launch on July 30, 2015. Another early investor made the same move in 2023, resurfacing after eight respite years. The wallet transferred 8,000 ETH worth $14.7 million to a new address.

In a different report the same year, an investor who received 60,000 ETH during the ICO created a contract and staked 4,032 ETH, worth $7.4 million at the time.

Generally, Ethereum whales have been cashing out on their investments. As shown below, the number of addresses holding more than 1000 coins has been on a downtrend over the past few years. Specifically, they are now at multi-year lows, justifying the narrative as Ethereum ICO participants claim value for their investment in 2014 when Ethereum held its ICO.

ETH Value Growth 10 Years Later

Meanwhile, CoinGecko reports Ethereum prices across the years, showing how the value of the ETH token has grown. ETH leaped 649% between 2020 and 2021 but spent the next two years below $2,000. It reclaimed above $3,000 and tagged $4,000 in March 2024 amid Ethereum ETF (exchange-traded funds) approval hype.

In hindsight, key statistics from the Ethereum ICO 10 years ago, according to the 2077 Collective, include:

• The Ethereum ICO ran between July 22 to September 2, 2014.
• ICO raised $18.3 million in Bitcoin.
• Around 60 million ETH were sold to contributors during the ICO.
• The ICO attracted contributions from over 11,000 different buyers.

As Ethereum stands 2,552.9% above its ICO price of $0.13, this value growth reflects growing investor confidence and interest surrounding the ecosystem and its potential applications. The network co-founder Vitalik Buterin shared the milestone in a post on X, ushering community members into the next decade.

“Happy 9th birthday, Ethereum! Looking forward to seeing what the next decade brings,” Buterin wrote.

Read More: Ethereum (ETH) Price Prediction 2024/2025/2030

Given the customer redemptions from Grayscale ETFs, Ethereum is currently underperforming. The asset is trading at $3,339, nearly a 2% drop since Tuesday’s opening.