Ethereum News Today: Ethereum Price Surges 6.38 as Buterin Reclaims Onchain Billionaire Status

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has once again joined the ranks of onchain billionaires, as the price of Ether (ETH) surged past $4,000. According to blockchain intelligence firm Arkham, Buterin's portfolio—comprising 240,042 ETH and smaller amounts of other tokens—is now valued at approximately $1.04 billion [1]. This marks a return to the status he first achieved in May 2021 when ETH reached $3,000 [1].

The price rally began with ETH hitting $4,000 on Friday, before rising further to $4,332 on Saturday, representing a 6.38% increase. As of the latest data, ETH trades at around $4,244, according to Nansen [1]. The upward momentum has fueled speculation that the cryptocurrency could soon reclaim its all-time high of $4,878, set in November 2021. Some traders, like Ted, have even suggested that this milestone may occur “just a matter of days now” [1].

The price surge has also triggered strong inflows into Ethereum-based ETFs. On Saturday alone, Ethereum ETFs attracted $461 million in inflows, surpassing Bitcoin’s $404 million. Over the past five trading days, U.S.-based spot Ethereum ETFs have seen cumulative inflows of $326.6 million, compared to $253.2 million for Bitcoin, according to Farside data [1].

Buterin first became a crypto billionaire in 2021 at age 27, when ETH hit $3,000 for the first time. At that point, his holdings were valued at around $1.029 billion [1]. This marked a dramatic rise from early 2021 when ETH was trading at approximately $700. At the time, Buterin noted that his holdings never exceeded 0.9% of the total supply and that his net worth had never reached $1 billion [1].

Despite the renewed optimism, Buterin has expressed caution regarding the growing institutional interest in Ethereum, particularly around the trend of corporate treasuries accumulating large quantities of ETH. He has warned that if these strategies become overleveraged, a price drop could trigger cascading liquidations and harm the network’s credibility [1]. His comments align with concerns from analysts who highlight the potential risks of excessive leverage, echoing warnings from the 2021 market turmoil.

The recent institutional activity mirrors strategies seen in Bitcoin's corporate adoption, with BitMine among those investing heavily in ETH, holding up to 5% of the total supply [1]. This has drawn comparisons to MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin strategy, with Ethereum now being described as the “MicroStrategy of Ethereum” [1].

Source: [1] Vitalik Buterin Reclaims 'Onchain Billionaire' Status (https://cointelegraph.com/news/ethereum-vitalik-buterin-onchain-billionaire-eth-price-surging)