Ethereum breaks through $4000! Vitalik Buterin returns to the billionaire ranks, ETH may surge to historical highs in the short term. As Ethereum's price successfully breaks through the $4000 mark and continues to rise, the on-chain asset valuation of Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has returned to over $1 billion. Market analysts are generally optimistic about ETH's short-term trend, believing that the challenge to the historical high of $4878 is just around the corner. At the same time, the inflow of funds into Ethereum spot ETFs is strong, even surpassing Bitcoin ETFs, indicating increased institutional confidence in ETH's future. However, Buterin himself expresses concerns about institutions being over-leveraged in holding ETH. Buterin's on-chain assets exceed $1 billion, with ETH holdings as the core. According to the latest data from blockchain intelligence firm Arkham, after Ethereum's price broke through $4000, Vitalik Buterin's on-chain wallet assets have soared to approximately $1.04 billion. His core holdings include 240,042 ETH. In addition, his **encryption asset allocation** also includes a small amount of other tokens, such as Aave Ethereum ( AETHWETH), WhiteRock ( WHITE), Moo Deng ( MOODENG), and Wrapped Ethereum ( WETH). ETH strongly breaks through $4300, challenging historical highs in sight. Ethereum's price continues its strong upward momentum over the weekend. After successfully reclaiming the critical psychological level of $4000 on Friday, it continued to climb 6.38% on Saturday, reaching a high of $4332. As of the time of writing, ETH's trading price is approximately $4244. This rebound in ETH's price coincides with a decline in Bitcoin's market dominance and a significant improvement in trader sentiment. Well-known **encryption currency analyst Ted and others predict that ETH is about to retest its historical high of $4878 set in November 2021, calling it "just a matter of days." Market data indicates that if ETH's price reaches $4500, it could trigger a massive short squeeze. CoinGlass estimates that reaching this level could lead to the liquidation of short positions valued at approximately $1.35 billion. Ethereum spot ETFs attract funds, surpassing Bitcoin ETFs. Arkham also pointed out that recent ETF fund flows show a trend favorable to Ethereum rather than Bitcoin. Data shows that last Friday, ETFs focused on ETH recorded a total inflow of $461 million, surpassing Bitcoin ETFs' $404 million. According to Farside's data, in the past five trading days, the net inflow of US spot Ethereum ETFs reached $326.6 million, while Bitcoin ETFs had a net inflow of $253.2 million. This reflects an increased willingness of institutional funds to flow into ETH, with the Ethereum spot ETF continuously attracting funds after approval. Buterin's billionaire journey and changes in holdings. Buterin first entered the billionaire ranks in May 2021 when ETH first broke through $3000. At that time, he held approximately 333,500 ETH, worth about $1.029 billion. However, he revealed in 2018 that his holdings of ETH had never exceeded 0.9% of the supply, and before the bull run in 2021, his net worth was "far from" $1 billion. Buterin warns of leveraged risks in institutional ETH holdings. Although the current rise in Ethereum has been supported by inflows of institutional funds and an increasing number of enterprises holding ETH as reserve assets, Buterin himself expressed a cautious view on this trend. In a recent interview, he warned that the potential risk of over-leverage in institutional ETH vaults could pose long-term hazards. "If you wake me up in three years and tell me that the vault (over-holding ETH) caused ETH to crash... I guess it's basically because they (institutions) turned it into some kind of over-leveraged game in some way," he said. Case: BitMine's significant increase in ETH holdings. Last week, BitMine Immersion Technologies, chaired by Fundstrat's Tom Lee, added 208,137 ETH to its growing crypto asset reserves. This move increased its total ETH holdings to 833,137, worth over $3 billion at current prices. This operation solidifies BitMine's position as the largest ETH-holding listed company and places it among the top four publicly traded companies with the most cryptocurrency holdings globally. Conclusion: The breakthrough of Ethereum's price above key resistance levels, the appreciation of the founder's wealth, and the strong inflow of ETF funds together paint an optimistic picture of the current ETH market. The market is generally focused on whether ETH can successfully challenge historical highs in the short term, opening a new bull run. However, Buterin's warnings also remind investors to pay attention to the leverage risks of institutional ETH holdings and to remain rational when participating in ETH contract trading or laying out ETH ecosystem development.