Ethereum (ETH) co-founder Vitalik Buterin has joined the billionaire ranks by surpassing a net worth of $1 billion, thanks to the recent sharp increase in Ethereum's price.
According to a report by Decrypt citing on-chain data analysis firm Alchemy Intelligence on the 11th (local time), the wallet believed to be owned by Buterin contains approximately 240,042 Ethereum, which is equivalent to about $1.03 billion. Including Ethereum-based meme coins like 'Ethereum Muden', the on-chain asset value is estimated at around $1.045 billion. This figure excludes off-chain holdings, and the actual assets are likely to be higher.
Ethereum has recently risen by about 19.8% over the past seven days, recording a market capitalization of $513 billion and approaching its all-time high from November 2021. As a result, Buterin's asset size has surpassed Costco, Palantir, and Exxon Mobil, and is now just 1 percentage point away from Netflix and Mastercard.
This upward trend was catalyzed by policy changes from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Trump administration. The SEC's announcement that liquid staking services are not considered securities issuance has resolved institutional uncertainty, thereby increasing the likelihood of Ethereum investment product launches for institutions. Additionally, President Trump's signing of an executive order allowing digital assets to be included in 401(k) retirement plans has raised expectations of potential capital inflows of up to $8.7 trillion.
