A major early investor, regarded as an Ethereum OG, has reactivated a wallet that had been dormant for about nine years to take profits near the peak of the current quarterly rally.
According to analytics tracker Lookonchain, the address acquired 3,000 ETH at an average price of $18.8 per coin in 2017 and withdrew the coins from Gemini. The initial investment totaled just $56,500.
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This week, the wallet’s owner transferred another 1,000 ETH ($2.68 million) to a Kraken deposit address. To date, the investor has sold 2,000 ETH at an average price of $3,096, receiving $6.19 million in total.
The reported net profit on the portion sold reached $8.8 million (a 156-fold return), while the remaining 1,000 ETH ($2.67 million) is still held in the wallet.
Ethereum posts its best Q3 on record — and early investors begin cashing out
The profit-taking comes against an unusual historical backdrop. According to CryptoRank’s quarterly data, Q3 2026 has been Ethereum’s strongest third quarter on record so far, with a return of +72.7%. The sharp rally followed declines of –29.1% in Q1 and –25.3% in Q2.
Historically, Q3 has been Ethereum’s weakest and most volatile quarter, with an average return of just +9.11% and a median return of +4.55%. This quarter’s gain has even surpassed the exceptional Q3 of 2020 (+59.2%), making current prices an attractive point for long-term holders to cash out.
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Other large holders are also taking profits. During the final week of September 2026, Ethereum saw a transfer of more than 112,000 ETH ($300 million) to Bitfinex by an investor whose position dates to 2023, as well as an over-the-counter (OTC) sale of 42,005 ETH ($111.9 million).
On the Bitcoin network, two wallets dormant for more than four years also moved about 4,500 BTC each to new addresses for internal balance consolidation. The stated combined value was approximately $380 million.
Despite these moves by long-standing holders, the market has remained resilient. Institutional inflows continue to absorb selling pressure.
According to SoSoValue and Farside Investors, regulated spot Ethereum ETFs have recorded net inflows for seven consecutive days, attracting more than $689.8 million over the latest reporting week. Their combined assets under management have reached $17.69 billion (about 5.4% of Ethereum’s total market capitalization), providing support as early investors realize gains.
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