Who really controls the most ETH?

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Mikhail Vnuchkov

01.09.2025

Who really controls the most ETH? — List of richest Ethereum owners: People are not the first

The largest personal Ethereum wallet is effectively lost due to forgotten keys, while the network itself, through staking contracts, controls more than half of all existing ETH.

According to Crypto.news citing Arkham, as of 2025, Ethereum (ETH) ownership is concentrated not in the hands of a few early adopters but within the network’s own mechanisms.

The largest holder of Ethereum today is not an individual but the ETH2 Beacon deposit contract, which secures the network by locking validator stakes. It currently holds over 66.8 million ETH worth around $287 billion, representing more than half of all circulating coins.

Crypto exchanges account for 55% of the top 20 addresses. Coinbase leads the pack with a staggering $18 billion in ETH held in custody and staking services. Binance follows with nearly $12 billion, while Kraken holds another $1.7 billion.

Asset management giant BlackRock now tops the list of institutional holders, controlling 3.2 million ETH (around $14.2 billion) to support its spot Ethereum ETF — a milestone for institutional adoption. Among corporate holders following Michael Saylor’s Bitcoin playbook for ETH is BitMine, which owns 1,713,899 ETH valued at $7.5 billion.

Legal and illegal ownership

The title of largest individual ETH holder belongs to Rein Lõhmus, an Estonian banker whose 250,000 ETH purchased during the presale remain inaccessible — a stark reminder of the unforgiving nature of self-custody. This makes Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, with 240,000 ETH, the largest active individual holder.

Other notable individuals include early ICO investor James Fickel and celebrities. Leading the celebrity cohort is Justin Bieber with 146.5 ETH, mostly from NFT sales, followed by streamer FaZe Banks and stars like Post Malone and Jimmy Fallon, whose holdings reflect the 2021 NFT craze more than serious investment.

The Ethereum rich list also has a dark chapter of stolen funds. The Gatecoin hacker remains the largest illicit ETH holder with 156,200 ETH stolen in a 2016 attack. Another major actor is the FTX hacker, who holds 95,700 ETH.

Among governments, seizures from criminals (including the Bitfinex hacker) make the U.S. government a significant player, holding 60,000 ETH (~$266 million) in assets.

As we wrote, Ethereum price prediction: Buyers eye breakout as price steadies above $4,400

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