OG whales wake up at $1.5K ETH like it's 2017 all over again — and they're selling

Eight-year-old Ether wallets have begun moving coins for the first time since 2017, adding fresh supply to the market as $ETH trades just above $1,500. Onchain data shows 37,806 ETH from long-dormant addresses became active, while separate whale transactions point to continued accumulation by other large investors. The mixed positioning comes as total long-term ETH whale profitability has fallen below zero for the first time since 2019, leaving every major whale cohort sitting on unrealized losses.

According to Lookonchain, four Ethereum wallets that received 37,602 ETH nearly eight years ago at an average price of around $830 became active after years of dormancy. The wallets held through the 2021 and 2025 bull markets, when their unrealized gains exceeded $150 million, then sold 33,623 ETH for about $52.5 million at around $1,560 on Thursday, leaving a realized profit of approximately $27.4 million. Fresh ETH selling has appeared alongside continued buying from other large holders, with one whale swapping 464 $BTC worth $27.6 million for 17,750 ETH in a capital rotation tracked by Lookonchain. Investor Chun Wang separately acquired another 9,937 ETH and 147 wrapped Bitcoin, bringing his month-long withdrawals from Binance to almost 87,000 ETH at an average purchase price of $1,749.

Institutional ETH trading also remained active, with BlackRock transferring 41,996 ETH and 4,577 $BTC to Coinbase Prime, a move commonly associated with custody or operational management rather than a confirmed market sale. Analyst Darkfost noted that Ether whales holding between 1,000 ETH and more than 100,000 ETH are all sitting on negative unrealized profit ratios, marking the first time since 2019 that every major whale cohort has been underwater. Darkfost added that periods when whale conviction was tested by ETH prices have often aligned with long-term bottom zones.

$Ether dropped to $1,510 during Thursday's sell-off but avoided setting a new yearly low even as $Bitcoin fell to fresh 2026 lows. Crypto trader Ardi described $1,500 as Ether's key long-term support, arguing that daily closes below that level challenge the bullish assumptions built up since the 2022 bear market. Crypto investor Jelle shared a similar view, saying a sustained break would send Ether back into a trading range last seen in early 2023, and weekly price action shows $ETH has defended the $1,500 region during several major corrections since mid-2022.