Nine-Year Dormant ETH Whale Awakens: Moves $250M to Gemini in Stunning On-Chain Transfer

A sleeping giant just stirred—and the entire crypto market felt the tremor.

On-chain data reveals a single Ethereum address, untouched for nearly a decade, has suddenly transferred a staggering quarter-billion dollars worth of ETH to the Gemini exchange. This isn't just a transaction; it's a seismic event from the blockchain's ancient history, hitting the present like a tidal wave of capital.

The Anatomy of a Whale Move

Whale movements are always watched, but this one carries the weight of crypto antiquity. The sheer scale—$250 million—speaks to conviction, whether it's a strategic reallocation or a prelude to a sell-off. These dormant coins represent a class of ultra-early believers, and their sudden activity sends analysts scrambling to decode the signal from the noise.

Why Gemini, and Why Now?

The choice of destination is as telling as the move itself. Transferring to a major exchange like Gemini typically flags an intent to trade, stake, or cash out—a direct injection into the market's liquidity veins. The timing raises the perennial question every trader hates: does the whale know something we don't, or are they just finally taking profits after a nine-year HODL? It's the ultimate game of chicken between diamond hands and smart money.

One thing's certain: in a market obsessed with narratives, a $250 million wake-up call from 2017 is a story that writes itself. It's a stark reminder that for all our fancy algorithms and real-time charts, the biggest moves can still come from a wallet that's been gathering digital dust since before the last bull run. Just another day where crypto's past decides to cash a check on the future's dime—Wall Street would need a committee meeting and three compliance officers just to think about moving that kind of money.

Mass ETH Transfers to Gemini

Arkham data shows that the address made 50,000 ETH transfer on Monday, following a 25,000 ETH transaction early this week. Further, the whale moved the remaining 60.283K ether to Gemini, which alone was worth $175.23 million. Now, the address holds around $70 worth of various altcoins.

EmberCN post read that the whale profited nearly $381 million, a 32x return, from holding the coin for 9 years.

The mass transfers come a week after a bitcoin wallet moved 909 BTC, now worth over $84 million, to a new address after more than 12 years of dormancy.

Ethereum Risks Drifting Toward Lower End – Analyst

ETH has been in the red over the week, slumping more than 7% to below $2,800 mark. The crypto has rebounded and is now trading at $2,934 at press time.

The lower moves reflect heavy ETF-related selling, which has cooled the momentum, keeping ETH capped below the $3,000 mark. However, on-chain activity reveals that daily active addresses have climbed toward 1.3 million.

Further, staking participation continues to rise, tightening the circulating supply. For instance, in total, Tom Lee’s BitMine has staked 2,218,771 ETH (worth $6.52 billion), over 52% of its total holdings. This includes its recent staking of 209,504 ETH (worth $610 million) today.

That said, Bloomberg Intelligence senior commodity strategist Mike McGlone has flagged that Ethereum risks drifting downward toward the lower boundary of its long-standing trading range.

In a post on X, he noted that Ether appears to be heading toward the lower end of its $2,000-$4,000 range since 2023.

“I see greater risks of it staying below $2,000 than above $4,000, especially when stock market volatility rebounds.”

Ether appears to be heading toward the lower end of its $2,000-$4,000 range since 2023. I see greater risks of it staying below $2,000 than above $4,000, especially when stock market volatility rebounds. pic.twitter.com/1IAMV10Jwe