When the crypto market once again feels the pain, with ETH prices undergoing a noticeable correction in February, a familiar piece of news that always sparks heated discussion circulates widely: Vitalik Buterin is selling ETH again. Over the past four days, the wallet of the Ethereum father sold 4,326 ETH, equivalent to $8.12 million, in batches through decentralized trading protocols like CoW Swap. Combined with previous data, cumulative sales since early February have exceeded 11,000 ETH, amounting to $22.78 million. Many trading enthusiasts immediately felt a wave of FOMO, thinking, "Even the founder is selling, time to run?" But looking at it calmly, this is by no means an "exit signal." Every public action by Vitalik carries strong transparency and foresight. As early as January 30, he posted clearly stating: The Ethereum Foundation will enter a period of "mild austerity" to free up resources for a full sprint on the core roadmap over the next five years. He personally will undertake some of the "special projects" originally handled by the foundation and withdrew 16,384 ETH from his wallet for this purpose, gradually deploying it to key areas such as open-source software, security and privacy projects, and full-stack verifiability. The sales over the past four weeks are the orderly execution of this long-term plan. In the Web3 world, Vitalik is never just a "crypto whale" but a thought leader who has guided the narrative since the 2014 whitepaper era. His token sales, from early funding of Gitcoin public goods to now supporting privacy and scalability research, have consistently served ecological construction. Today, let's dissect the context of this sale, see how it intertwines with major Ethereum upgrades like Glamsterdam and Hegotá in 2026, and understand what it means for ordinary traders, DeFi enthusiasts, and meme coin players.