Today, the crypto world has been abuzz with news: The Ethereum Foundation is about to take action again.
That's right, you read that correctly. According to cross-verified information from multiple sources, the Ethereum Foundation is planning to sell 10,000 ETH through centralized exchanges in the coming weeks. On-chain data also shows that a fund exactly amounting to 10,000 ETH has been transferred to the renowned Kraken exchange.
A single stone stirs up a thousand waves.
Every time the foundation stirs, two voices always resonate in the community. One is the alarm: 'Run! The foundation is crashing the market!' The other is curiosity: 'What is this for this time?' Panic and speculation, like twin brothers, always make an appearance at this moment.
But this time, if you merely stay at the superficial narrative of 'crashing the market,' you might miss the real highlights of this grand show.
Don't panic. Let's dig deeper. This sale of 10,000 ETH is less of a simple 'sell-off' and more like a carefully orchestrated 'show.' It reveals not only the development roadmap for the Ethereum ecosystem in the coming years but also showcases a superb art form—how to cleverly apply the brakes on the market while fueling future growth.
Behind this is a carefully designed new financial management philosophy aimed at balancing long-term development with short-term market impacts.
Decoding this 'sell-off': Where does the money come from, and where does it go?
First, we need to clarify a basic question: Why does the foundation want to sell ETH?
The answer is simple and direct: to provide 'logistics' for the ecosystem.
The Ethereum Foundation is not a profit-oriented company; it is more like a non-profit 'public utility' whose core mission is to support the research and development of the Ethereum protocol, expand the ecosystem, and fund public goods. This means it needs to convert its crypto assets (mainly ETH) into 'hard currency'—such as dollars and euros—that can circulate in the real world to pay engineers' salaries, sponsor hackathons around the globe, and fund those imaginative yet potentially transformative research projects.
The use of these 10,000 ETH has already been clearly marked: to support R&D work, ecosystem funding, and related donations.
Where will this money be spent? We can find clues from the foundation's recent spending records. In the first quarter of 2025, the Ethereum Foundation splurged approximately $32.647 million, funding 94 global projects. These projects encompass a wide range, from optimizing the bottom-level consensus layer protocols to cutting-edge zero-knowledge proof (ZKP) cryptography research, to various tools that enhance developer happiness, and community education activities aimed at nurturing the next generation of builders.
It can be said that almost all the exciting technological advancements you see in the Ethereum ecosystem today—whether it's the booming development of Layer 2 or the smooth experience brought by account abstraction—are supported to some extent by the foundation's 'logistics.' This 10,000 ETH is the next batch of fuel about to be injected into this innovation engine.
But problems also arise. As a well-known 'whale' in the market, any large sell-off by the foundation could trigger significant market volatility and even be interpreted as 'insiders being pessimistic about the market.' This can damage holder confidence and create a negative cycle.
So, how can we both get things done and stabilize the market?
The foundation's answer is: 'Nurturing quietly.'
They have made it clear that this sale will be conducted in 'multiple small orders' rather than a single massive sell order crashing into the market. Imagine this as opening a giant dam to release water, transforming it into slowly draining with countless small faucets. The purpose of this is singular: to minimize direct impacts on ETH prices and avoid creating unnecessary market panic.
This is not just a posture but also a form of wisdom. It tells the market: We are not here to cash out and leave; we are simply making necessary financial conversions for the daily operations of the ecosystem.
Not just selling coins: The foundation's new financial manual.
If we say that the 'breaking down into smaller pieces' selling strategy is the tactical 'art,' then what truly supports all of this is the foundation's strategic 'way'—a more systematic and transparent financial management policy that was just announced and implemented this year (2025).
The core of this policy is a seemingly simple number: 15%.
According to the latest disclosed policy, the Ethereum Foundation has set a clear annual operational expenditure cap for itself: the funds spent each year should not exceed 15% of its total asset reserves.
What does this 15% mean?
1. Sustainable 'engine': It provides a clear and predictable framework for the foundation's expenditures. This means that researchers, developers, and community organizers in the ecosystem can have stable expectations for future funding support. It ensures that even in a market winter, the core R&D of Ethereum will not grind to a halt due to 'lack of funds.'
2. Strong 'safety cushion': One important goal of this policy is to always maintain at least 2.5 years of operational expenditure buffer. In other words, the foundation always holds enough money to last for two and a half years, allowing them to continue supporting ecosystem development even if ETH prices plummet tomorrow. This is an extremely robust and responsible financial planning approach that injects strong confidence into the entire ecosystem.
3. Smart 'counter-cyclical' regulation: This may be the most shining point of this new policy. The foundation's policy clearly mentions a 'counter-cyclical posture.' What does this mean? It means that during a market frenzy, when everyone is 'fomoing,' the foundation may slow down spending and ETH sales to reduce market boosting; while in a market downturn, when builders need support the most, the foundation will instead increase funding, playing the role of 'providing timely assistance.' This is not only a financial strategy but also a manifestation of ecological leadership, helping to smooth out extreme market fluctuations so that real builders can weather the cycles.
4. Future-oriented 'slimming' plan: 15% is just a start. The foundation has also announced a longer-term goal: to gradually reduce this expenditure ratio to a 5% long-term benchmark level over the next five years. This sends a strong message: the foundation is transitioning from being a 'one-stop' central funder to a more efficient and focused 'catalyst' role. They are well aware that a healthy ecosystem must ultimately break free from dependence on a single 'nurse' and achieve self-sustainability and prosperity.
So, you see, this sale of 10,000 ETH is not an isolated or arbitrary decision. It is a step-by-step execution under this new and carefully considered financial framework. It is both transparent (telling the market my rules) and predictable (you can probably calculate how much I will spend in a year).
Walking the tightrope: the 'accelerator' for development and the 'brake' for the market.
Now, let's connect all the dots and see how this 'balancing act' is performed.
On one side is the 'accelerator' for development.
Ethereum is at a crucial stage of development. From the PoS era after the 'Merge' to various scaling solutions, state management, and anti-censorship technologies currently being explored, every core protocol upgrade requires a massive amount of talent and resources. The foundation ensures that the accelerator for research and development can be continuously and stably pressed down through this '15% rule,' propelling the Ethereum ship forward. The years 2025-2026 are regarded as a critical development period by the foundation, hence meticulous financial deployment is the lifeline for ensuring core delivery.
On the other side is the 'brake' for the market.
By setting clear expenditure caps, employing a strategy of small, dispersed sales, and maintaining transparent financial reporting mechanisms, the foundation provides the market with the much-needed 'certainty.' What the market fears most is the unknown. When a 'whale's' actions become rule-based, and each of its sell-offs serves a public and legitimate purpose, the panic caused by information asymmetry will significantly decrease. This is the 'brake' the foundation applies to the market, using rules and transparency to hedge against the impacts of large capital flows.
It's like a skilled race car driver who knows when to slow down on which corner and when to accelerate on which straight. The foundation is playing this role, dynamically adjusting the accelerator and brakes with a complex 'two-variable trust formula' and 'asset-liability model,' trying to find the optimal route between pushing the limits of ecosystem development and maintaining market stability.
Conclusion: The transformation from 'whale' to 'gardener.'
Looking back at history, every asset operation by the Ethereum Foundation has served as a 'stress test' for the crypto world. But today, we no longer see a 'whale' acting merely on instinct; instead, we see an 'ecological gardener' holding a precise operation manual and thinking about the long-term future.
This plan to sell 10,000 ETH is the best footnote for this role transformation.
It tells us that a mature decentralized ecosystem's leadership must learn how to balance the idealistic stars and seas with the mundane realities of daily life. It must be able to plan a technological blueprint for the next decade while also pragmatically managing how each asset flow impacts current market sentiment.
The support and attention from everyone are the greatest motivation for us to continuously produce better works! Thank you all~
