Ethereum's co-founder is under fire for selling millions worth of ETH. Many in the Web3 community are labeling him a scammer, but let's break down the situation.
𝙒𝙝𝙤 𝙞𝙨 𝙑𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙠 𝘽𝙪𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙣?
Vitalik is a programmer and one of Ethereum’s co-founders. He first learned about Bitcoin from his father at 17, which shifted his focus towards cryptocurrency.
2/ 𝙁𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝘾𝙧𝙮𝙥𝙩𝙤 𝙄𝙣𝙫𝙤𝙡𝙫𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 (2011)
He quickly became involved in the crypto world, co-founding Bitcoin Magazine, a publication that played a significant role in shaping discussions around digital currencies.
3/ 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝘽𝙞𝙧𝙩𝙝 𝙤𝙛 𝙀𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙪𝙢 (2013)
Noticing Bitcoin’s limitations, Vitalik proposed Ethereum—a blockchain with smart contract capabilities through its own programming language, Solidity.
4/ 𝙀𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙪𝙢 𝙄𝘾𝙊 (2014)
Ethereum's Initial Coin Offering (ICO) launched on July 20, 2014, pricing ETH at $0.3 per coin. It sold 60 million ETH and raised about $18M, making it a landmark ICO at the time.
5/ 𝙀𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙪𝙢’𝙨 𝙇𝙖𝙪𝙣𝙘𝙝 (2015)
Ethereum officially launched on July 30, 2015, with its initial release, “Frontier,” providing the groundwork for smart contracts and decentralized applications (dApps).
6/ 𝙃𝙞𝙨 𝙒𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙩𝙝
Vitalik's early involvement with Ethereum brought him significant wealth, with his net worth now estimated between $530M and $600M.
7/ 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙍𝙚𝙘𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙁𝙐𝘿
Criticism started when Vitalik sold $2M worth of ETH. Some accused him of negatively impacting ETH’s price and being secretive about the sale. Vitalik responded, explaining the sales were to fund valuable projects, not for personal gain. He clarified that he won’t be investing in other projects to avoid conflicts of interest. His sales are directed towards funding Ethereum-related initiatives and charitable causes.
The backlash against Vitalik for selling a small portion of his holdings in a token with a $270B market cap is exaggerated. Media today seems keen on discrediting major crypto figures like Durov, CZ, and now Vitalik. Be careful of the information you consume and think critically.
