Vitalik Buterin defends recent ETH sales, says they’re for projects and charity

Vitalik Buterin clarifies ETH sales were for projects and charity, not profit.
He held 325K ETH three years ago but now holds 240K ETH.
Buterin has also defended Ethereum’s support for DeFi amid criticisms from some in the space.

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has come out to address allegations surrounding his sales of Ether (ETH), clarifying that these transactions were not driven by personal profit but by a commitment to support Web3 projects and charitable initiatives.

According to a recent post by on-chain analytics firm Lookonchain, Buterin has reduced his ETH holdings by 85K ETH ($209M) in 3 years.

3 years ago, @VitalikButerin mentioned he held 325K $ETH($1.46B at the time), when the price of $ETH was $4,500.

Now he holds 240K $ETH($592M).

He has reduced his holdings by 85K $ETH($209M) in 3 years. pic.twitter.com/LG2bZcvd4A

— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) August 30, 2024

The most recent is the transfer of 800 ETH worth over $2 million to a multi-sig wallet. Lookonchain highlighted that the same wallet address had received 3,000 ETH from Buterin on August 9, fueling concerns about the motives behind Buterin’s sales.

vitalik.eth(@VitalikButerin) transferred 800 $ETH($2.01M) to a multisig wallet again 40 minutes ago.

The multisig wallet swapped 190 $ETH for 477K $USDC later.

On Aug 9, #Vitalik also transferred 3,000 $ETH($8.04M) to this multisig wallet.https://t.co/81Vf39bvbL pic.twitter.com/6IlwtcqvPg

— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) August 30, 2024

Vitalik Buterin denies selling ETH for profit

In response, Buterin firmly denied any allegations of selling ETH for personal profit. He clarified that he has not sold any Ether for personal financial gain since 2018. Instead, he explained that his ETH sales were intended to support various Web3 projects and philanthropic endeavours.

I haven’t sold and kept the proceeds since 2018. All sales have been to support various projects that I think are valuable, either within the ethereum ecosystem or broader charity (eg. biomedical R&D)

— vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) August 31, 2024

Buterin’s statement aims to underscore his longstanding commitment to using his resources for the advancement of important causes rather than personal enrichment.

Supporting Ethereum and DeFi

Buterin’s statements also touch upon his stance regarding decentralized finance (DeFi) and the broader Ethereum ecosystem. He has come under fire for Ethereum allegedly not sufficiently supporting DeFi.

Kain Warwick, the inventor behind the concept of yield farming, and MilliΞ a crypto philosopher criticized Buterin for his perceived lack of emphasis on DeFi.

However, Buterin defended Ethereum’s role in DeFi and his position stating that he thinks “DEXes are great, and I use them every week.”

The kinds of applications that I want to see are applications that are (i) useful in a sustainable way, and (ii) don’t sacrifice on the principles (permissionlessness, decentralization, etc)

I think DEXes are great, and I use them every week.

I think decentralized stablecoins…

— vitalik.eth (@VitalikButerin) August 25, 2024

Buterin’s defence reflects his commitment to ensuring that Ethereum continues to support meaningful and sustainable developments within the blockchain space. He has consistently advocated for the importance of long-term value over temporary gains, reinforcing his position that the Ethereum network should remain focused on foundational principles rather than transient trends.

By addressing these allegations and defending Ethereum’s role in DeFi, Buterin reaffirms his commitment to the broader vision of a decentralized and impactful digital future.