#打榜优质内容# Ethereum breaks through $4000! Vitalik Buterin returns to the billionaire ranks. ETH short-term may hit a new historical high.

With the price of Ethereum successfully breaking the $4000 mark and continuing to rise, the on-chain asset valuation of Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has returned to over $1 billion. Market analysts are generally optimistic about the short-term trend of ETH, believing that the challenge to the historical high of $4878 is just around the corner. At the same time, the inflow of funds into Ethereum spot ETFs is strong, even surpassing Bitcoin ETFs, indicating that institutions are increasingly confident in the future of ETH. However, Vitalik Buterin himself has expressed concerns about institutions over-leveraging their holdings of ETH. According to the latest data from blockchain intelligence company Arkham, after Ethereum's price broke $4000, the total value of Vitalik Buterin's on-chain wallet assets has soared to approximately $1.04 billion, with a core holding of 240,042 ETH.
In addition, its **crypto asset allocation** also includes a small number of other tokens, such as Aave Ethereum (AETHWETH), WhiteRock (WHITE), Moo Deng (MOODENG), and Wrapped Ethereum (WETH). ETH has strongly broken through $4300, aiming for a historical high as the price of Ethereum continues its strong upward momentum over the weekend. After successfully reclaiming the key psychological level of $4000 on Friday, it continued to rise by 6.38% on Saturday, reaching a high of $4332! This rebound in ETH price coincides with a decrease in Bitcoin's market dominance and a significant improvement in trader sentiment. Renowned **crypto analyst Ted** and others predict that ETH is about to re-test its historic high of $4878 set in November 2021, stating that this "is just a matter of a few days." Market data indicates that if the ETH price reaches $4500, it could trigger a large-scale short squeeze. CoinGlass estimates that reaching this level could lead to the liquidation of short positions worth approximately $1.35 billion. The Ethereum spot ETF's ability to attract funds is outpacing that of Bitcoin ETFs, with Arkham also noting that recent ETF fund flows show a trend favoring Ethereum over Bitcoin.
Data shows that last Friday, the ETF focused on ETH recorded a total inflow of $461 million, surpassing the $404 million of the Bitcoin ETF. According to Farside, in the past five trading days, the net inflow of the US spot Ethereum ETF reached $326.6 million, while the net inflow of the Bitcoin ETF was $253.2 million. This reflects an increasing willingness of institutional funds to flow into ETH, as the Ethereum spot ETF continues to attract capital after its approval.
Vitalik Buterin's Billionaire Journey and Holdings Changes Buterin first entered the billionaire ranks in May 2021, when ETH broke the $3000 mark for the first time. At that time, he held approximately 333,500 ETH, valued at about $1.029 billion. However, he revealed in 2018 that his ETH holdings had never exceeded 0.9% of the supply, and before the 2021 bull market, his net worth was "far from" $1 billion. Vitalik Buterin Warns of Institutional ETH Holdings Leverage Risks Although Ethereum's recent rise has been supported by institutional capital inflows and an increasing number of companies holding ETH as reserve assets, Buterin himself expressed a cautious view on this trend. In a recent interview, he warned that the potential risk of over-leveraging in institutional ETH vaults could pose long-term dangers. "If you wake me up in three years and tell me that the vault (overholding ETH) caused the collapse of ETH... I guess it's basically because they (institutions) somehow turned it into an overly leveraged game," he said. Case Study: BitMine's Major Increased Holdings of ETH Last week, BitMine Immersion Technologies, chaired by Fundstrat's Tom Lee, added 208,137 ETH to its growing crypto asset reserves. This move increased its total ETH holdings to 833,137, worth over $3 billion at current prices. This action solidified BitMine as the largest ETH-holding publicly traded company and placed it among the top four publicly traded companies globally holding the most cryptocurrency.
Conclusion: The breakthrough of Ethereum's price at a key resistance level, the appreciation of the founder's wealth, and the strong inflow of ETF funds together paint an optimistic picture of the current ETH market. The market is generally focused on whether ETH can successfully challenge its historical highs in the short-term, initiating a new bull market. However, Vitalik Buterin's warnings also remind investors to pay attention to the leverage risks of institutional holdings of ETH and to remain rational when participating in ETH contract trading or planning for the development of the ETH ecosystem.