Ethereum Foundation Announces $43 Million ETH Sale to Supercharge Development

Ethereum's core backers just made a power move—liquidating a chunk of their treasury to fuel the network's next evolution.

Funding the Future

The Foundation isn't just sitting on its digital gold. It's converting $43 million worth of ETH into operational rocket fuel. Think protocol upgrades, developer grants, and ecosystem grants—the whole shebang.

Market Mechanics & Mixed Signals

Sure, large sales can stir short-term jitters. But long-term? This isn't dumping—it's strategic deployment. Building isn't free, even in decentralized paradise.

Because apparently, even in crypto, sometimes you have to spend money to make money—or in this case, sell ETH to build ETH. Classic finance move, just with more blockchain.

TLDR

• Ethereum Foundation plans to sell 10,000 ETH ($43 million) over several weeks through multiple smaller orders on centralized exchanges
• Sale will fund research and development, ecosystem grants, and donations as part of EF’s treasury policy established in June
• Foundation previously sold 10,000 ETH to SharpLink Gaming in July and has distributed over $32 million in grants this year
• ETH price hit all-time high of $4,866 in August and currently trades around $4,330, up 23% in past 30 days
• Other major ETH purchases include Yunfeng Financial Group buying 10,000 ETH and Ether Machine securing 150,000 ETH

The ethereum Foundation announced plans to sell 10,000 ETH tokens worth approximately $43 million over the coming weeks. The sale will take place through centralized exchanges using multiple smaller orders rather than one large transaction.

The foundation said the conversion will fund research and development work, ecosystem grants, and donations. This represents part of the organization’s ongoing efforts to support Ethereum’s development and broader ecosystem growth.

0/ Transparency Notice: Over several weeks this month, EF will convert 10K ETH via centralized exchanges as part of our ongoing work to fund R&D, grants, and donations.

Conversions will take place over multiple smaller orders, rather than as a single large transaction.

— Ethereum Foundation (@ethereumfndn) September 2, 2025

The announcement comes after the foundation rolled out a new treasury policy in June 2025. The policy caps annual operational spending at 15% and establishes a multi-year reserve buffer for long-term financial stability.

The treasury policy requires the foundation to periodically calculate deviations in fiat-denominated assets. Based on these calculations, the organization determines how much ETH to sell over three-month periods.

This marks the second major ETH sale since the treasury policy took effect. In July, the foundation sold 10,000 ETH to SharpLink Gaming, making it the first publicly traded company to purchase ETH directly from the foundation.

Recent Foundation Activity

The foundation has been active in restructuring its operations this year. On Friday, it temporarily paused open grant applications as part of efforts to overhaul its grant process.

Through the first quarter of 2025, the foundation distributed more than $32 million in grants. These grants covered community initiatives and educational programs within the Ethereum ecosystem.

The foundation also conducted two additional transactions worth about $12.7 million in ETH earlier this year. These sales totaled 2,795 ETH and followed the same gradual approach outlined in the treasury policy.

Market Activity and Price Movement

ETH has experienced strong price performance in recent months. The token reached an all-time high of $4,866 in late August before settling around current levels.

As of Tuesday afternoon, ETH traded at approximately $4,330. This represents a 2% increase over the past 24 hours and a 23% gain over the previous 30 days.

Other Major ETH Transactions

The foundation’s planned sale coincides with other large ETH market movements. Yunfeng Financial Group disclosed it purchased 10,000 ETH in the open market on Tuesday, though this transaction appears unrelated to the foundation’s sale.

Ether Machine reported securing 150,000 ETH on Tuesday as part of building an ETH treasury ahead of its anticipated Nasdaq listing. Following this acquisition, the company will hold more than 345,000 ETH worth about $1.5 billion.

Ethereum co-founder Joseph Lubin suggested over the weekend that Wall Street adoption could help ETH surpass Bitcoin as a monetary base. The token’s August price surge followed comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell about adjusting US monetary policy stance on interest rates.