The price of Ethereum (ETH), the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, fell by more than 2.90% on Monday after the Ethereum Foundation, a non-profit organization that supports the development of the Ethereum network, swapped over 1,700 ETH for $2.7 million in USDC on the Uniswap decentralized exchange.
The transaction was executed by a wallet labeled as a “Grant Provider” on Etherscan, a blockchain explorer that tracks the activity of the Ethereum network. The wallet is believed to be controlled by the Ethereum Foundation, which holds a significant amount of ETH allocated for funding and supporting various projects and programs on the Ethereum network.
The Ethereum Foundation does not have direct control over the Ethereum blockchain, which is decentralized and governed by a network of nodes. However, its actions can have a strong impact on the price and sentiment of ETH, as it is one of the key players in the Ethereum ecosystem and has a historical influence on its development.
The ETH Sale Could be Part of the Foundation’s Schedule
The sale of ETH by the Ethereum Foundation is likely part of its periodic token sales to cover operational costs and continue its development efforts. The foundation has previously stated that it plans to reduce its reliance on its ETH holdings and diversify its sources of funding in the long term.
The price of ETH dropped from $1,622 to $1,580 within a few hours after the swap, according to data from CoinMarketCap. The decline also affected other major cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin (BTC), which fell by 0.8% in the same period.
ETH is still up by more than 150% year-to-date, as it benefits from the growing popularity and innovation of decentralized applications (DApps) and decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms built on the Ethereum network. The network is also undergoing a major upgrade to improve its scalability, security, and efficiency, which could boost the demand and value of ETH in the future.
