The Ethereum Foundation’s latest move has caught the crypto market’s attention. It transferred 160,000 ETH, worth around $654 million to a wallet known for past token sales. The transaction came as Ether ETFs continue to see low demand, and investor sentiment remains weak. On-chain data from Arkham Intelligence revealed the movement of funds on October 21. The receiving wallet has a record of sending ETH to exchanges like Kraken and SharpLink Gaming, which has raised speculation that the Foundation may be preparing for another sale. Ethereum Foundation and the $654 Million Transfer According to Arkham Intelligence, this specific wallet has handled large transfers before, most of which led to token sales. That pattern stirred debate among traders about whether the Foundation is reducing its holdings. However, Hsiao-Wei Wang, the Foundation’s co-Executive Director, clarified that the move was part of a “planned wallet migration.” She explained on X that there was no sale involved and that the funds were simply being reorganised for operational reasons. Even with this statement, the timing of the transaction has led to intense discussion. The move came during a period of rising concern over how the Foundation manages its assets, especially after recent layoffs and internal restructuring. Ethereum ETFs Show Weak Demand The Foundation’s transfer also comes as Ether ETFs struggles to attract inflows. Data from SoSoValue shows USspot Ether ETFs saw a $145 million net outflow on October 20 alone. Over the past two weeks, these products have lost close to $500 million. Ethereum ETFs have spent most of the week bleeding | Source: Farside The lack of ETF demand has added pressure to ETH’s price. After reaching an all-time high of $4,959 in August, Ether has since fallen to around $4,000. The token has been testing support near $3,900 which analysts see as a strong buying zone if the level holds. Crypto analyst Poseidon noted that ETH must stay above $4,100 to maintain its bullish outlook. A sustained close above this mark could push prices toward $5,800 in the coming weeks. Internal Rift Over Developer Pay Adding to the tension is the recent resignation of Péter Szilágyi, the Foundation’s former lead developer. Szilágyi revealed that his total earnings over six years amounted to about $625,000 before taxes. Developers express dissatisfaction at the Ethereum foundation | source: X In his resignation letter, he claimed that success at the Foundation often depended on proximity to top leadership, including Vitalik Buterin . He also argued that developers were underpaid despite Ethereum’s market cap rising to nearly $450 billion during his tenure. Wang responded publicly and admitted that “veteran builders were underpaid for the value they brought.” Foundation’s Structural Changes Over recent months, the Ethereum Foundation has announced several structural adjustments. These include streamlining operations, reducing staff and introducing new financial management strategies. The group has also been more careful about liquidating ETH, and has been selling smaller amounts to fund research, donations and DeFi-related projects. Previously, the Foundation’s token sales rarely rose above $10 million. That made the latest $654 million movement stand out even more. Last month’s smaller $42.7 million sale through Kraken was meant to fund R&D efforts. However, it was criticised as being “anti-DeFi” by some in the community. According to Arkham Intelligence, the Foundation still controls about $827 million in tokens. Most of that is in ETH but it also holds smaller amounts of Bitcoin (BTC), BNB, and Arbitrum (ARB).