Vitalik Buterin reduces holdings by 17,000 ETH in January: An in-depth analysis of privacy project funding and market dynamics

Recently, the activity of Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin’s addresses has attracted widespread attention in the crypto community. According to on-chain data analysis platform Arkham, after reserving a large amount of funds for a privacy project, Vitalik-related addresses have net outflows of approximately 17,000 ETH over the past month.

This series of actions began with his publicly announced personal fund allocation plan and was executed under specific market conditions, becoming a key event for observing industry leaders’ movements and the development of the Ethereum ecosystem.

Technical Details of Selling 17,000 ETH in One Month

On-chain data shows that as of early February, wallets under Vitalik Buterin’s control held about 241,000 ETH. By February 25, this balance had decreased to around 224,000 ETH, a reduction of about 17,000 ETH during that period.

Arkham Intelligence further analyzed that this reduction was not carried out through a single large transaction but via multiple small swaps on the decentralized exchange aggregator CoW Protocol. This approach is often used in on-chain trading to reduce market impact, aiming to avoid sharp price swings caused by large sell orders in the secondary market.

Specifically, the sell-off was carried out in batches. During the first three days of this month, the addresses transferred out about 2,961 ETH, worth roughly $6.6 million. In the past three days, the selling accelerated, with a total outflow of ETH valued at about $7 million.

Buterin’s ETH balance has been steadily decreasing since February. Source: Arkham

Privacy Focus: $45 Million Fund Commitment

The position change can be traced back to January of this year. Vitalik Buterin publicly stated that he had reserved 16,384 ETH from his personal holdings, worth approximately $45 million at the time. This fund is intended for long-term, phased investments supporting privacy technologies, open-source hardware, and secure verifiable software systems.

Vitalik emphasized that this move aligns with the Ethereum Foundation’s strategy of entering a “moderate contraction” phase, aimed at promoting the development of open-source and self-sovereign tools. He plans to personally participate in some projects that were previously handled by the foundation, focusing on building a comprehensive open-source hardware and software stack capable of protecting both digital and real-world privacy.

“In particular, we seek to build an open, secure, and verifiable full-stack hardware and software solution that can simultaneously safeguard our personal lives and the public environment,” he stated. This declaration ties privacy computing, zero-knowledge proofs (zkSNARKs), and other technologies closely to Ethereum’s practical applications, clarifying the underlying logic of the fund flow.

Ethereum Market Performance and Key Data

During the same period as Vitalik Buterin’s address activity, Ethereum’s native token ETH experienced significant price adjustments. According to Gate.io data, ETH’s price changed by -35.00% over the past 30 days.

As of February 25, 2026, based on the latest Gate data, key Ethereum metrics are as follows:

• Current Price: $1,914.98
• 24-hour Trading Volume: $375.29M
• Market Cap: $231.09B, Market Share: 9.70%
• 24-hour Price Change: +4.79%
• Circulating Supply: 120.69M ETH

Looking at historical price performance, ETH has fallen 1.82% in the past 24 hours, 2.58% over the past 7 days, and has declined a total of 35.00% over the past 30 days.

From an on-chain perspective, despite the significant price correction, the fundamental security of the Ethereum network remains intact. Data shows that over 30% of ETH supply is still staked and locked. Although staking yields have been diluted due to increased participation, dropping to around 2.8%, validator queue entries remain high, and withdrawals are minimal. This indicates continued confidence among long-term participants in the network.

Ethereum price. Source: DropsTab

Intersection of Privacy Technologies and Ethereum’s Roadmap

Vitalik’s recent fund allocation and address activity not only reflect personal financial management but also highlight the Ethereum ecosystem’s focus on technological development. Recently, Vitalik has frequently discussed the role of zero-knowledge proofs (zkSNARKs) in privacy, scalability, and broader internet applications.

He pointed out that such cryptographic tools can verify computations without exposing underlying data, which is crucial for building decentralized applications that balance privacy and security. By directing personal funds toward teams developing these technologies, Vitalik is actively accelerating the transition from theory to practical implementation. While short-term address outflows may be interpreted by some market participants as selling pressure, from an ecosystem development perspective, this is a long-term investment in Ethereum’s privacy infrastructure.

Summary

In summary, Vitalik Buterin’s sale of 17,000 ETH over the past month aligns closely with his announced $45 million privacy technology funding plan in terms of timing and amount. The use of multiple small transactions via CoW Protocol demonstrates consideration for market liquidity.

Against the backdrop of significant price volatility in Ethereum, these actions tie his personal asset management to the broader technological development of the ecosystem. For industry observers, this is not only about the movement of large addresses but also provides an important window into the strategic importance of privacy computing, zero-knowledge proofs, and other frontier technologies within Ethereum.