February's Major Crypto Shifts: Vitalik's ETH Moves and Whale Activity Reshape Market Sentiment

The cryptocurrency market witnessed significant portfolio adjustments and large-scale position changes throughout February, with notable players reshuffling their holdings. These movements reflect broader shifts in market sentiment and risk appetite among major stakeholders.

Major Holders Adjust Their Positions

Ethereum’s creator Vitalik Buterin made headlines by divesting 17.97 million USD worth of ETH during the month, leaving approximately 10,676 ETH remaining for potential future sales. Simultaneously, a whale investor who had held ETH for over two years decided to exit the position, liquidating 3,313 tokens. However, the outcome proved significantly less favorable than the accumulation phase—the investor’s unrealized gains of 19.96 million USD melted down to just 338,000 USD in realized profits, underscoring the volatility of extended holding periods.

Influential Traders Share Their Current Holdings

Arthur Hayes, the prominent crypto industry figure, revealed that his current portfolio includes a diversified mix spanning Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Zcash (ZEC), and HYPE tokens. Meanwhile, Wu Jihan, co-founder of Bitdeer, addressed concerns about the company’s recent Bitcoin liquidations, emphasizing that such actions don’t preclude future accumulations. His statement clarified that strategic liquidations during certain market conditions don’t signal permanent exits from the asset class.

Market Headwinds and Realized Losses

Global trade tensions have resurfaced as a concern, reigniting risk-averse sentiment that extended beyond cryptocurrencies—traditional safe-haven assets like gold and silver experienced notable price increases alongside market pullbacks. The pressure became evident in XRP’s performance, which posted its largest realized loss since November 2022, with weekly realized losses hitting 1.93 billion USD. This metric highlights the extent of underwater positions liquidated during the recent downturn.

At the time of writing, major cryptocurrencies traded near BTC at $67.44K, ETH at $2.01K, and XRP at $1.41, reflecting the current market valuation pressures that prompted these large-holder adjustments.