Old Ether Wallets Transfer 37,806 ETH as $1.5K Test Looms for Whales

Ether (ETH) is trading just above the $1,500 level as a notable on-chain development draws attention to how long-term holders are behaving. Eight-year-old ETH addresses—dormant since 2017—have begun moving coins again for the first time in years, while other large investors continue to rotate capital into Ether.

At the same time, analytics tracking whale performance suggests a tougher backdrop for big holders: total long-term ETH whale profitability has slipped below zero for the first time since 2019, meaning major cohorts are broadly sitting on unrealized losses even as individual investors still accumulate selectively.

Key takeaways

• Lookonchain reports that 37,806 ETH from long-dormant addresses have recently become active after years of inactivity.
• One group of wallets originally received 37,602 ETH in 2017 and later sold 33,623 ETH after waking up, realizing roughly $27.4 million in profit.
• Other whales appear to be increasing exposure: one reportedly swapped 464 BTC (about $27.6 million) for 17,750 ETH, while investor Chun Wang acquired additional ETH and withdrew nearly 87,000 ETH from Binance over the past month.
• According to Darkfost, all major whale cohorts are showing negative unrealized profit ratios—first such reading since 2019.
• $1,500 is being treated as ETH’s critical support area by traders, but there’s disagreement on whether it will hold or lead to a deeper pullback into an early-2023 demand zone.

Long-dormant “OG” wallets re-enter the market

One of the most striking signals in the current cycle involves very old Ethereum holders. According to Lookonchain, four wallets that received a combined 37,602 ETH nearly eight years ago—at an average price of around $830—became active again after a long period of dormancy.

While those wallets were present throughout past market booms, including the 2021 and 2025 bull runs, the report says their unrealized gains at the peak exceeded $150 million. When the addresses woke up this week, Lookonchain reports that the wallets sold 33,623 ETH for roughly $52.5 million at around $1,560. The realized profit on that sale is estimated near $27.4 million.

This kind of “awakening” matters for market microstructure because it can change the balance between passive long-term supply and active selling. Even if the amounts are not large relative to total market liquidity, these transfers can influence short-term sentiment and highlight that not all long-held positions are being kept for a single cycle.

Whales split: profit-taking alongside ongoing accumulation

The picture is not one-sided. Alongside the reported revival of older wallets that sold, Lookonchain also flagged whale activity pointing to fresh accumulation. In one example, the tracker reported a whale swapping 464 BTC worth about $27.6 million for 17,750 ETH—an explicit rotation into Ether rather than a pure conversion into cash.

Another prominent investor, Chun Wang, was also reported to have acquired 9,937 ETH and 147 wrapped Bitcoin. Lookonchain further noted that over the past month Wang withdrew almost 87,000 ETH from Binance at an average purchase price of $1,749.

Separately, institutional-related activity continued in parallel. BlackRock transferred 41,996 ETH and 4,577 BTC to Coinbase Prime, a move commonly interpreted as custody or operational management rather than a confirmation of direct market selling.

Taken together, the mixed whale behavior suggests ETH demand is still being pursued by certain large players even as other long-held positions resume distribution—an imbalance that can produce choppy price action around key technical levels.

Why whale profitability turning negative changes the narrative

Beyond transaction-level activity, performance metrics are adding pressure to the story. Crypto analyst Darkfost said that Ether whales holding between 1,000 ETH and more than 100,000 ETH are all showing negative unrealized profit ratios. The analyst described this as the first time since 2019 that every major whale cohort has been underwater.

Darkfost also argued that in prior cycles, periods when ETH prices tested whale conviction often matched long-term bottom zones. In the current environment, however, the implication is more complex: while the “bottom zone” pattern suggests support could exist beneath current prices, the data also indicates larger holders are experiencing more consistent drawdown pressure heading into 2026.

For investors, this kind of shift is important because it can alter the expectations around who sells and when. Unrealized losses don’t automatically lead to capitulation, but they do reduce the number of holders sitting on easy paper gains—potentially affecting how quickly whales are willing to realize profits during rebounds.

Traders focus on $1,500 as support debates intensify

Price action is keeping the $1,500 area front and center. Ether was reported to have dropped to about $1,510 during Thursday’s sell-off, while avoiding a new yearly low even as Bitcoin slipped to fresh lows in 2026.

Trader Ardi highlighted $1,500 as Ether’s key long-term support, warning that daily closes below the level would undermine bullish assumptions that built up after the 2022 bear market. Another investor, Jelle, echoed the importance of a sustained break, saying it would likely send ETH back into a trading range last seen in early 2023.

Chart behavior since mid-2022 reportedly supports the support-zone thesis: ETH has defended $1,500 repeatedly during major corrections, making it one of the altcoin’s longest-standing technical floors.

However, not all participants view the outlook as uniformly constructive. Popular trader Cyclops pointed instead to a wider potential accumulation window between roughly $1,070 and $1,370, calling it a demand area established in early 2023. Cyclops also noted that a move into that range would place ETH below its multi-year ascending trendline—an event that could extend the bearish market structure and delay a durable recovery.

That divergence in positioning reflects a common market dynamic: near-term supporters are betting that the market will defend established levels, while more cautious traders are preparing for a deeper pullback that would reset technical conditions.

What to watch next for ETH

With long-dormant wallets beginning to move, whale profitability turning negative across major cohorts, and traders debating whether $1,500 will hold or fail, the next signal is likely to come from how ETH reacts around daily and weekly closes at that support area. If $1,500 breaks convincingly, attention may shift toward the lower demand band cited by traders; if it holds, the market will look to see whether accumulation continues to outweigh distribution.