In the past 37 days, Golem Network, a decentralized computing platform on the Ethereum blockchain, has moved a substantial amount of Ethereum (ETH) valued at $115 million to centralized exchanges.
This activity, initially reported by crypto journalist Wu Blockchain, involves 36,000 ETH collected during their 2016 initial coin offering (ICO). The strategic transfer pattern mirrors tactics typically employed by large-scale crypto holders or “whales,” who distribute their assets to exchanges in smaller portions, each under $10 million daily.
Strategic sales impact Golem’s market position
According to blockchain analytics firm Lookonchain, Golem has recently liquidated 24,400 ETH, garnering approximately $72 million through transactions on major exchanges like Binance, Coinbase, and Bitfinex. Despite these sales, Golem maintains a substantial reserve, holding 131,447 ETH—estimated to be over $400 million in value—according to data from Arkham Intelligence.
Golem Network Assets (Source: Arkham Intelligence).
Since its inception, Golem has aimed to facilitate a marketplace for decentralized computing power, having raised a significant 820,000 ETH back when the currency was valued at just $10.2 each. However, the platform has struggled to meet its projected growth and market influence, with its most recent project update being the release of Golem-js 3.0.
Market impact and Ethereum’s price volatility
The broader crypto market feels the weight of Golem’s recent Ethereum transfers and sales. The sell-off activities align with a broader trend where crypto whales capitalize on their holdings amid fluctuating market conditions.
Concurrently, two anonymous traders deposited significant amounts of ETH to exchanges Binance and Kraken, contributing to the price pressures. Over the past week, Ethereum’s price has dipped by 12%, with a noteworthy drop to $2,826 before it marginally recovered above $3,000. Similarly, Bitcoin has experienced significant volatility, briefly touching lows around $54,321 before climbing back to $57,463.
Whales Ethereum Sales (Source: SpotOnChain).
The market’s reaction to these movements has been intense, with $365 million in positions liquidated across 94,177 traders in just 24 hours. These liquidations were almost evenly split between long and short positions, each surpassing $182 million. This activity underscores the current precarious balance in the cryptocurrency trading environment, highlighting the sensitivity of market prices to high-volume transactions.