Dormant Pre-Mine Ethereum Wallet Awakens After Nearly a Decade, Sparks Speculation

A dormant Ethereum wallet from the pre-mine era has reawakened after almost 10 years, triggering curiosity and speculation in the crypto community. According to Whale Alert, the wallet—created during Ethereum’s genesis phase in 2015—received 2,153 ETH worth just $667 at the time. Today, that stash is valued at over $5.43 million.

On May 24, the wallet address “0x10df68” made its first transaction in nearly a decade, transferring 30 ETH (worth around $75,970) to a second address, “0x967e37.” The second wallet then rapidly routed the funds through Tornado Cash, a privacy-focused Ethereum mixer designed to obscure transaction trails.

This move has sparked intense speculation across social media. Many wonder whether the wallet belongs to an early Ethereum insider or even Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, who has previously voiced support for on-chain privacy tools like Tornado Cash. However, no concrete evidence links him to the transaction.

Interestingly, the original wallet remains mostly intact, still holding more than 2,100 ETH. In contrast, the second wallet now shows a balance of only 2.78 ETH, suggesting that most of the transferred funds were anonymized.

The sudden activity from a pre-mine Ethereum address, especially one inactive for nearly a decade, combined with the immediate use of Tornado Cash, raises questions about user intent, identity, and motivations. As regulatory scrutiny intensifies around crypto privacy tools, this development could gain further attention.

Crypto analysts are closely watching the wallet for future activity, as its movements may provide more clues about early Ethereum adopters or potential whale reactivations. With ETH’s current value and growing focus on privacy, even minor moves by historic wallets can ripple through the market.