Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin’s recent $15 million USDC transaction raised eyebrows initially, as it appeared to be a transfer to the Gemini crypto exchange. However, the Ethereum Foundation clarified that this was not the case.
On October 17, blockchain analytics firm PeckShield reported that Buterin’s wallet, known as “vitalik.eth,” had moved $14.93 million to Gemini on October 16. But the Ethereum Foundation later explained that it was actually an Ethereum Name Service (ENS) authorization for a transfer from a charity multisig wallet to fund a grant. The funds never left Buterin’s wallet.
The $14.93 million USDC came from Kanro, a charity linked to Buterin, which he received on October 14. He then endorsed a transfer of the same amount to a new multisig wallet address. Kanro, funded by Buterin, focuses on addressing Covid and pandemic-related issues.
Separate analysis by crypto data provider Lookonchain revealed that Buterin had also transferred nearly $500,000 to Coinbase three days before the Gemini transaction.
Despite this news, the price of Ethereum’s native currency, Ether, remained relatively stable, only falling 0.68% in the past four hours, according to CoinGecko data.This transaction is just the latest in a series of transfers from Buterin’s wallets in recent months, with total transfers exceeding $3.9 million in September.
Notably, Buterin sent 400 ETH worth $600,000 to Coinbase on September 24, and a transaction of 600 ETH (equivalent to $1 million) from the vitalik.eth address was reported on August 21, as monitored by on-chain platforms.
