Ether (ETH) has surged more than 10% in April, reaching as high as $2,430 this month amid renewed market optimism.
Yet over the same period, the Ethereum Foundation — the nonprofit that oversees development of the Ethereum protocol — has continued to carry out notable treasury sales.
Key takeaways:
- The Ethereum Foundation has sold roughly 20,000 ETH so far in 2026.
- However, strong institutional demand for Ether has helped absorb the selling pressure, limiting its impact on the market.
Why is the Ethereum Foundation selling ETH?
In early April, the Ethereum Foundation sold 5,000 ETH for about $11 million in DAI. It later conducted a larger over-the-counter (OTC) sale of 10,000 ETH to Tom Lee’s Bitmine at an average price of $2,387, raising roughly $23.9 million.
The sales are not driven by short-term price movements but stem from a disciplined treasury strategy introduced in June 2025.
Under this approach, the Ethereum Foundation maintains fiat and stablecoin reserves covering roughly 2.5 years of operating costs. Periodic ETH sales are used to replenish these reserves and fund development, research, grants and broader ecosystem support.
So far in 2026, the foundation has sold about 20,000 ETH, raising more than $45 million. It still holds roughly 92,500 ETH (around $215 million) in its liquid treasury, along with another 70,000 ETH staked, according to Arkham Intelligence data.
The foundation’s 70,000 staked ETH could generate roughly $4 million to $5 million in annual yield, based on current prices and an estimated annual return of 2.7%–3.8%. Over time, this income stream is expected to reduce the need for ongoing ETH sales to fund operations.
Are Ethereum Foundation sales bearish for ETH?
The foundation’s ETH sales are relatively small compared to overall market activity. A typical sale of 5,000–10,000 ETH accounts for just 0.08%–0.25% of Ethereum’s average daily trading volume, which ranges between $10 billion and $12 billion.
At that scale, the market can absorb the selling pressure with minimal impact on price.
Onchain data also points to strong underlying demand from large holders. The number of daily accumulation addresses — wallets consistently buying and holding Ether — recently climbed to 2,434, surpassing exchange deposit addresses, which dropped to 2,300, indicating fewer participants preparing to sell.
Additionally, spot Ethereum ETFs have seen strong inflows for three straight weeks, drawing in over $2 billion in fresh capital since early April, according to SoSoValue data.
This steady institutional inflow points to growing demand for Ethereum investment products on Wall Street.
Rising wedge signals potential 15% pullback
From a technical standpoint, Ether appears to be forming a rising wedge — a pattern marked by two converging upward-sloping trend lines and weakening volume.
In technical analysis, this setup typically resolves with a breakdown below the lower trendline, often leading to a decline equivalent to the pattern’s maximum height.
Applying this framework to Ether’s chart suggests a downside target near $1,950 — a drop of more than 15% — by June, assuming a breakdown from the wedge’s apex around $2,580, where the two trend lines converge.
On the other hand, a breakout above the wedge’s upper boundary would invalidate the bearish scenario. In that case, bulls could look to the 200-day exponential moving average (EMA), currently near $2,630, as the next upside target.
