Ethereum’s price has seen a sharp downturn recently, pushing some of the cryptocurrency’s largest holders to liquidate substantial amounts of their ETH to cover debts.
The cryptocurrency has dropped 18.35% from its Monday high of $4,109, forming a bearish engulfing pattern on its daily chart. At the time of writing, Ethereum is trading at $3,390, with a notable 7% decline over the past 24 hours. Trading activity has surged by 14%, reflecting heightened market participation amid the sell-off.
The recent price drop forced whales to sell $ETH to repay debts.A whale deposited 22,746 $ETH($77.7M) to #Binance in the past 5 hours and withdrew stablecoins from #Binance to repay debts on #Spark and #Aave.And this whale has deposited a total of 31,968 $ETH($122.3M) to… pic.twitter.com/vhw9J1KTkP
— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) December 20, 2024
Whales dump ETH to settle DeFi debts
Blockchain data from LookonChain reveals that whale holders have recently offloaded large quantities of Ethereum. One whale deposited 22,746 ETH, valued at $77.7 million, to Binance early Friday, using the funds to withdraw stablecoins and repay outstanding debts on decentralized finance platforms like Spark and Aave. Over the past 48 hours, this whale has moved a total of 31,968 ETH, worth $108.3 million at current market rates, to the Binance exchange.
Source: IntoTheBlock
Another whale transferred 49,910 ETH, valued at $170 million, to Binance and withdrew $137.8 million of stablecoins, reportedly for similar debt repayment purposes. Over the past week, Ethereum whales holding between 1,000 and 10,000 ETH have reduced their cumulative holdings from 13.47 million ETH to 13.41 million ETH, indicating a sell-off of 60,000 ETH worth more than $200 million.
Ethereum liquidations and market sentiment shift
According to data from CoinGlass, Ethereum liquidations have reached $190 million in the last 24 hours, with long positions contributing $165 million and short positions $25 million. Open Interest (OI) in Ethereum futures has also declined by 7.4%, reflecting the broader bearish trend in the crypto market. This decline in OI has coincided with a shift in sentiment as futures traders turn more bearish. The aggregated premium of futures positions has turned negative for the first time since early November, signaling an increase in short positions.
Not all whales are selling
Despite the widespread selling, some major players have taken advantage of the price drop to accumulate ETH. World Liberty Finance, reportedly linked to Donald Trump’s financial ventures, acquired 722 ETH for $2.5 million in USDT. Additionally, a whale associated with Longling Capital purchased 6,000 ETH during the dip, adding to its reputation for successful market timing.
After the $ETH price drop, #Trump's World Liberty(@worldlibertyfi) spent 2.5M $USDT to buy 722 $ETH again 2 hours ago.https://t.co/AmeIF2plRb pic.twitter.com/UwI88MfoUK
— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) December 20, 2024
Ethereum continues to face strong resistance at $4,000, a consistent barrier throughout 2024. This price point has been tested multiple times since 2021, but the cryptocurrency has yet to achieve a sustained breakout above it.
The post Ethereum Plunge Triggers Whale Sell-Offs Worth Millions to Repay Debts first appeared on Coinfea.
