Arthur Hayes transferred 508.647 ETH worth approximately 1.5 million USD to Galaxy Digital, creating new speculation that he may be reducing his holdings. This move is considered surprising, as not long ago, Hayes had expressed a strong positive outlook on Ethereum.
News about Arthur Hayes selling Ethereum
On-chain data shows that this transfer originated from a wallet linked to Hayes and went to a deposit address of Galaxy Digital.
Transfers to institutional desks do not always indicate immediate selling, but such movements are often associated with liquidity provisioning or off-market transactions.
This transaction occurred while Ethereum was trading below the key psychological level of 3,000 USD after a volatile December affected by ETF outflows and derivatives repositioning.
Despite these movements, Hayes still holds more than 4,500 ETH.
So if there is selling, it is considered portfolio management, not an exit from the entire market.
That period is interesting because just a few days ago, Hayes had presented a future roadmap for Ethereum to financial institutions, arguing that major financial players are beginning to accept the limitations of private blockchains.
You cannot have a private blockchain; you need a public blockchain for security and practical use.
Hayes sees stablecoins as a key driver that makes Ethereum understandable for the traditional financial sector. Additionally, he expects banks to start building Web3 infrastructure on Ethereum instead of ad hoc ledgers.
You will see major banks starting to do crypto and Web3 on public blockchains. I believe that public blockchain is Ethereum.
He acknowledges that privacy remains a significant obstacle for institutional adoption, but he argues that this issue will be addressed at the application or Layer-2 level while Ethereum remains the security foundation.
They may create L2s with some privacy features... but the base layer and security layer still belong to Ethereum.
However, market conditions remain mixed. Ethereum continues to struggle to recover above 3,000 USD consistently, as the ETH spot ETF fund has seen clear outflows in mid-December, while implied volatility in the derivatives market has contracted, reflecting caution rather than panic.
At the protocol level, various activities continue to move towards rollups, which help keep transaction costs low, but at the same time limit fee collection on the base layer of Ethereum.
Hayes also has a straightforward stance on valuation, suggesting long-term targets rather than short-term predictions.
If ETH reaches 20,000 USD, that means about 50 Ethereum would make a million… towards the end of the cycle, which is before the next presidential election.
Currently, Hayes' on-chain activities indicate a strategic positioning, not a change of heart. His belief remains the same: Ethereum will win if stablecoins and institutional finance on-chain expand.
However, the market may still be waiting for that story to materialize fully.
