Vitalik Buterin Regains Onchain Billionaire Status
Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum, has regained his onchain billionaire status after the Ether price rose above $4,200 for the first time in eight months. Blockchain intelligence firm Arkham reported that Buterin’s publicly known Ether holdings are now valued at approximately $1.04 billion.
Arkham data shows Buterin holds 240,042 ETH in tracked wallets. His portfolio also contains smaller amounts of Aave Ethereum (AETHWETH), WhiteRock (WHITE), Moo Deng (MOODENG), and Wrapped Ethereum (WETH). The surge in the Ether price from Friday’s $4,000 level contributed to this updated valuation.
Ether Price Climbs to $4,332 With Market Impact
On Saturday, the Ether price increased 6.38%, reaching a high of $4,332 before settling at $4,244, according to Nansen data. The move followed Friday’s return above $4,000, a level last seen in December 2024. At the same time, Bitcoin’s share of the cryptocurrency market cap decreased.
Crypto trader Ted wrote on X that Ether reclaiming its November 2021 all-time high of $4,878 is “just a matter of days now.”
Figures from CoinGlass Indicate Market Risks
Figures from CoinGlass indicate that a rise to $4,500 could place about $1.35 billion in short positions at risk. This reflects the amount that would be liquidated if the Ether price reaches that level.
Ethereum ETFs Post Higher Inflows Than Bitcoin ETFs
Arkham highlighted that Ethereum ETF products have recently seen higher inflows than Bitcoin ETFs. On Friday, Ethereum ETFs recorded total inflows of $461 million, while Bitcoin ETFs reported $404 million.
According to Farside data, US-based spot Ethereum ETFs had net inflows of $326.6 million over the past five trading days. During the same period, Bitcoin ETFs saw net inflows of $253.2 million.
Buterin’s Billionaire Journey
Vitalik Buterin first became a crypto billionaire in May 2021 at the age of 27. The milestone came when the Ether price passed $3,000 for the first time. At that point, Buterin held around 333,500 ETH, valued at about $1.029 billion, based on Etherscan onchain data.
Earlier, in October 2018, Buterin said he had never owned more than 0.9% of the total ETH supply and his net worth had “never came close” to $1 billion before 2021.
Buterin Addresses Risks From Ether Treasury Holdings
Some analysts have linked recent Ether price increases to the rise of corporate Ether holdings. Speaking in an interview on Thursday, Vitalik Buterin warned about potential risks tied to Ether treasuries.
“If you woke me up three years from now and told me that treasuries led to the downfall of ETH, then, of course, my guess for why would basically be that somehow they turned it into an overleveraged game,” Buterin said.
His comments come as the Ethereum ETF market expands and institutional Ether holdings gain more attention.