At the beginning of May 2025, the ETH market witnessed opposing actions from large investors, often referred to as whales. These opposing behaviors of whales present both risks and opportunities for investors.
The opposing actions of Ethereum whales
On one hand, some Ethereum whales are accumulating ETH in large quantities. One whale purchased 3,029.6 ETH worth $5.74 million. However, this whale is currently facing a temporary loss of $142,000 as the price has dropped to $1,826.
On May 1, 2025, Lookonchain reported that multiple whale addresses had accumulated thousands of ETH within two hours. These actions indicate that some large investors still believe in the long-term potential of ETH despite short-term price volatility.
On the other hand, the selling pressure from ETH whales is very high. On May 2, 2025, OnchainLens reported that a whale sent 2,680 ETH to Kraken, causing an estimated loss of about $255,000.
Meanwhile, analysts revealed that another whale transferred 3,000 ETH to Kraken within 10 minutes on the same day, signaling a strong intention to sell.
Source: The Data Nerd
Notably, a whale that received 76,000 ETH during the 2015 ICO sold 6,000 ETH, potentially realizing a profit of $10.92 million.
Additionally, on May 1, 2025, on-chain data showed that a whale increased its Short position by borrowing an additional 4,000 ETH, bringing the total to 10,000 ETH (equivalent to about $18.4 million).
These moves highlight the stark differences in the strategies of Ethereum whales, with accumulation and selling creating significant pressure on the price of ETH.
Market context and investor sentiment
Fluctuations in whale behavior coincide with the crypto market influenced by many factors. The price of ETH has increased by 2% over the week and has slightly decreased in the past 24 hours. The price is hovering around $1,824, significantly lower than the peak of $2,500 in March 2025.
ETH price chart for the past month | Source: TradingView
Nevertheless, market sentiment still shows some positive signs. Ethereum investment products also saw an inflow of $183 million last week after 8 weeks of outflows. According to Sosovalue data, the Ethereum spot ETF had a total net inflow of $6.49 million yesterday. This reflects the long-term interest of institutions, even amidst short-term selling pressure from whales.
Furthermore, the large Short position of 10,000 ETH held by a whale indicates expectations of a price decline in the short term, potentially amplifying downward pressure if market sentiment turns negative.
Meanwhile, retail investors seem to be affected by this volatility, with ETH trading volume on exchanges down 10% in the past 24 hours.
Risks and opportunities
The opposing actions of whales put investors at a crossroads of risk and opportunity. On the risk side, selling pressure from whales, especially the significant Short position, could reduce the price of ETH in the short term, especially in an overbought market.
Ethereum TVL | Source: DefilLama
However, there are also many opportunities. The accumulation of thousands of ETH by whales reflects long-term confidence in Ethereum's potential, especially as the network continues to lead in DeFi, with a total value locked (TVL) of $52 billion in May 2025, according to data from DefiLlama.
Analyst Merlijn has pointed out that the current price structure of Ethereum is similar to Bitcoin in 2020. Accordingly, he believes that ETH will explode strongly if history repeats itself.
ETH is showing the same structure as BTC | Source: Merlijn
Ethereum risks losing developers to Solana – a network that is rapidly growing due to better startup support and a streamlined user experience.
However, technical upgrades such as Ethereum 2.0 and the development of layer 2 solutions like Arbitrum and Optimism also support the long-term growth of ETH.
Investors may view the current low price as an opportunity to accumulate, but they should closely monitor whale activity and technical indicators to mitigate the risk of price corrections.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Investors should conduct thorough research before making decisions. We are not responsible for your investment decisions.