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Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin and other prominent “whales” have offloaded millions of dollars in ETH since the beginning of February, adding narrative fuel to a market rout that saw the world's second-largest cryptocurrency tumble below $2,000.
While the high-profile sales by Buterin served as a psychological trigger for retail panic, a closer examination of market data suggests that the primary pressure came from a systemic unwind of leverage and record-breaking selling activity across the network.
Nonetheless, these disposals, combined with significant selling by other industry insiders, have prompted investors to question whether project leaders are losing confidence or simply managing operational runways amid extreme volatility.
Why is Buterin selling his Ethereum holdings?
In the past 3 days, Buterin sold 6,183 ETH ($13.24M) at an average price of $2,140, according to blockchain analysis platform @lookonchain .

However, the specifics of Buterin’s transactions reveal a calculated, rather than panic-driven, strategy.
Notably, Buterin publicly disclosed that he had set aside 16,384 ETH, valued at approximately $43- $45 million at the time, to be deployed over the coming years.
He stated the funds are earmarked for open-source security, privacy technology, and broader public-good infrastructure as the Ethereum Foundation enters what he described as a period of “mild austerity.”
In this light, the most defensible explanation for “why he sold” is mundane. It appears to be the conversion of a pre-allocated ETH budget into spendable runway (stablecoins) for a multi-year funding plan rather than a sudden attempt to time the market top.
However, the channel through which these sales affect the market is more narrative-driven than liquidity-based. When investors see founder wallets active on the sell side during a downturn, it tilts sentiment and deepens the bearish resolve of an already shaky market.
Still, Buterin remains an ETH whale, holding over 224,105 ETH, which is equivalent to approximately $430 million.
Did Buterin's ETH sales precipitate a market crash?
The central question for investors is whether Buterin’s selling mechanically pushed ETH below $2,000.
From a structural perspective, it is difficult to argue that Buterin's $13.24 million sell program, by itself, breaks a major market level, given ETH's multi-billion-dollar daily trading volume.
So, a sell order of this magnitude is small relative to typical turnover and lacks the volume required to consume order book depth and drive prices down significantly on its own.
However, Buterin was not selling in a vacuum. He was part of a broader exodus of large holders that collectively weighed on the market.
On-chain trackers flagged significant activity from Stani Kulechov, the founder of the DeFi protocol Aave. Kulechov sold 4,503 Ethereum (valued at about $8.36 million) at a price of around $1,857 just hours before ETH's slide accelerated.
This activity is symptomatic of a broader trend. Data from CryptoQuant shows that the network has faced record selling activity this month.

The analytics firm noted that the network had seen an increase in large whale order sizes during the downturn, suggesting that high-net-worth individuals and entities were actively de-risking into the liquidity provided by the drop.

While a single whale cannot crash the market, a synchronized exit by industry leaders can create a self-fulfilling prophecy.
When liquidity is thin and leverage is stretched, these “headline flows” signal to the broader market that “smart money” is de-risking, prompting smaller traders to follow suit in a bid to preserve capital.
The real drivers behind ETH's crash
While the narrative focused on founder wallets, the bulk of the crash was driven by three distinct market forces: leverage unwinding, ETF outflows, and macroeconomic headwinds.
Data from Coinglass indicated hundreds of millions of dollars in ETH liquidations over 24 hours during the worst of the move, with long liquidations dominating.
This created classic cascading conditions in which price declines trigger forced sales from overleveraged positions, which in turn trigger further declines and additional forced selling.

Simultaneously, institutional support evaporated. US spot ETH ETFs have recorded about $2.5 billion of net outflows over the past four months, according to SoSo Value data.
This occurred alongside much larger outflows from Bitcoin ETFs. This represents the kind of institutional de-risking that matters more than any one wallet when the market is already sliding.
Compounding these crypto-specific issues is the macroeconomic backdrop.
Reuters tied the broader crypto drawdown to a cross-asset selloff and tighter liquidity fears. The crypto market has shed about $2 trillion from its peak in October 2025, with roughly $800 billion wiped out in the last month alone, as investors reduced risk and leveraged positions unwound.
#ETH $ETH #WhaleDeRiskETH

The idea of getting rich from internet memes is being seriously re-examined. While the early days of meme coins produced some rapid success stories, the market looks very different now. Many investors who held popular dog-themed tokens are facing a tougher reality as enthusiasm fades. The attention that once came purely from hype is no longer enough, and users are starting to demand real purpose.

At the same time, a new generation of crypto protocols is beginning to take shape. These projects are not built around social media trends. Instead, they focus on creating practical financial tools with long-term value. This steady shift of capital away from hype-driven assets and toward functional systems is becoming one of the defining stories of 2026.

Shiba Inu (SHIB)

Shiba Inu (SHIB) is trading at an estimated $0.000006, and the drop in its worth appears to be brutal, having fallen more than 60% since a historic peak in 2021. The token is failing to see a reason to climb even after its huge brand name and market cap worth almost $3.5 billion. Gone are the childhood days of vertical rallies.

The SHIB technical charts indicate that the levels of resistance are high at the $0.000010 and $0.000012 levels. These sections are full of vendors who are seeking to break even in years of holding. Analysts are making pessimistic price forecasts in the remaining part of the year. According to some professionals, SHIB might fall another 20% to $0.000004 in the case of the current support being lost.

Mutuum Finance (MUTM)

The crypto protocol now drawing attention from former meme coin investors is Mutuum Finance (MUTM). It is a decentralized platform in development that focuses on non-custodial lending and borrowing. The goal is to let users earn interest on their crypto or access liquidity without selling their long-term holdings.

The project has already raised over $20.43 million and attracted more than 19,000 holders, showing steady community growth. Mutuum Finance is currently in Phase 7 of its distribution, with the token priced at $0.04. This reflects roughly 300% growth from early phases, while still sitting below the stated launch price of $0.06, which many analysts see as leaving room for further upside if development milestones continue to be met.

Why MUTM May outperform SHIB 

First, the size of the market capital is a massive determinant in returns in the future. Shiba Inu has an already existing market cap of $4 billion. SHIB requires an additional $4 billion new money to gain by half. This constrains its potential to a large extent. MUTM is on a far earlier level. Its market cap is low hence it takes a very small amount of capital to achieve huge percentage returns. It possesses the type of growth room that SHIB had in 2020.

Second, there is a difference in utility. Shiba Inu is mostly a meme coin that is driven by hype. In its effort to add features, it has no fundamental financial reason. MUTM is built around utility. It uses mtTokens, which are designed to be interest-bearing assets that increase in value as interest is paid back through the system. These tokens are meant to represent a user’s share in supplied assets rather than act as simple placeholders.

The project also outlines a buy-and-distribute model in its design. Under this plan, a portion of protocol fees is intended to be used to buy MUTM tokens from the market and redistribute them to the community. This approach is focused on linking token value to platform usage, rather than relying on short-term hype often seen with meme coins.

Third, it is all about timing in crypto. The reason why many early SHIB investors are moving to MUTM is that they can see the momentum. Recently, Mutuum Finance just activated the V1 protocol on the testnet. This proves the tech is ready. Investors desire to be associated with a project that is only beginning to make its way instead of a project that has already reached its climax.

The Last Window and the Security

Demand is continuing to build as Phase 7 progresses, with many participants aiming to secure the $0.04 price before the planned $0.06 launch level. Interest has increased as availability tightens, which is common in later distribution stages.

Security has also been a key focus for the project. Mutuum Finance has completed a full audit with Halborn and maintains a strong score from CertiK, adding confidence for cautious investors. To encourage participation, the platform runs a 24-hour leaderboard, where the top daily contributor can receive a $500 bonus. 

Easy entry options, including card payments, have lowered the barrier to join. As meme tokens like SHIB struggle to regain momentum, more investors are beginning to look toward utility-driven projects such as Mutuum Finance.

For more information about Mutuum Finance (MUTM) visit the links below:

Website: https://www.mutuum.com
Linktree: https://linktr.ee/mutuumfinance