Key Takeaways
- Over 17,000 ETH valued at approximately $49 million was withdrawn from staking by the Ethereum Foundation on Saturday
- The withdrawal process utilized Lido’s unstETH contract, with funds set to become liquid after queue processing
- This action occurred as the Foundation neared its 70,000 ETH staking milestone
- The Foundation provided no public explanation, leading to widespread speculation about potential market sales
- A recent over-the-counter transaction saw the Foundation transfer 10,000 ETH to Bitmine Immersion Technologies
On-chain tracking data from Arkham Intelligence revealed that the Ethereum Foundation withdrew 17,035 ETH during the weekend, representing roughly $49 million in value. The operation consisted of multiple transactions that transferred wrapped staked ETH (wstETH) into Lido’s unstETH contract, with each batch containing approximately 811 wstETH.
The withdrawn assets will undergo Lido’s withdrawal queue before returning as liquid ETH. No official communication from the Foundation has addressed this significant movement.
The withdrawal’s timing attracted considerable attention. The Foundation executed this unstaking operation precisely when it stood on the verge of achieving its internal benchmark of 70,000 staked ETH. Prior to the withdrawal, approximately 69,500 Ethereum sat in the Foundation’s staking position, leaving only a small margin to the target.
The Foundation’s serious commitment to staking began in February 2026. An initial stake of 2,016 ETH was followed by an additional 22,517 ETH deposit in March, with over 45,000 ETH staked during the current month’s early days.
The strategic decision to pursue staking operations came in June 2025. The Foundation outlined plans to generate yield that would support protocol research initiatives, ongoing development work, and ecosystem grant programs.
Market Liquidation Concerns Resurface
This withdrawal activity has reignited anxiety about potential selling pressure entering the market. Community observers have pointed to the Foundation’s recent engagement in over-the-counter transactions, particularly a 10,000 ETH transfer to Bitmine Immersion Technologies.
“The biggest seller of ETH continues to be the people who created ETH,” one user posted online.
Market analysts have identified the $2,300–$2,400 range as a critical zone for ETH pricing, suggesting this bracket may determine the token’s immediate trajectory.
Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has raised concerns in the past about potential governance challenges that could emerge from substantial Foundation staking during controversial hard fork situations.
DeFi Sector Addresses Unrelated Security Breach
Meanwhile, the wider Ethereum DeFi landscape faces challenges following a $293 million security breach affecting the Kelp restaking platform. Attackers extracted more than 116,000 restaked ETH tokens, subsequently deploying them as collateral for borrowing operations that generated approximately $195 million in uncollateralized debt on Aave.
A collaborative effort known as “DeFi United,” spearheaded by Aave, has committed over 43,500 ETH (valued near $101 million) toward stabilizing rsETH. Contributing organizations include Lido DAO, Golem Foundation, EtherFi Foundation, and Mantle.
The Ethereum Foundation’s latest verified blockchain activity remains the $49 million unstaking transaction recorded on Saturday, April 26, 2026.
