Vitalik Buterin supports institutions holding ETH but warns against "leveraged gambling"; the treasury company has holdings of 3.04 million Ether worth 12 billion USD.

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin publicly supported companies going public to indirectly hold ETH through the "Ethereum Treasury Company" during the Bankless podcast on August 7. He stated that it provides a valuable entry point for investors with different financial needs. Data shows that such companies have cumulatively held 3.04 million ETH (accounting for 2.5% of the total), valued at about $12 billion, with Bitmine leading the way with 833,000 in holdings. However, Vitalik has sternly warned about the risks of excessive leverage, stating that if ETH crashes in the future, "the culprit will surely be the treasury companies evolving into leveraged gambling," emphasizing that current holders are not Terra-style speculators. This statement draws a red line for institutional compliance in holding coins and on-chain risk control.

Vitalik Buterin endorses the treasury model: expanding institutional coin holding channels, locking in $12 billion ETH

Vitalik Buterin clearly supports publicly traded companies holding ETH through Ethereum Treasury Firms. In an interview, he pointed out that these companies provide a "valuable indirect coin-holding channel" for a broader range of investors by pooling capital to purchase and hold large amounts of ETH. By choosing to hold shares in treasury firms instead of directly accumulating coins, they create "more options" for participants with different financial needs. Vitalik Buterin believes this trend has positive implications for the adoption rate of the Ethereum ecosystem.

The Strategic ETH Reserve data shows that the Ethereum treasury currently holds a total of 3.04 million ETH (approximately 2.5% of the total supply), worth $12 billion. The top three institutions by holdings are:

1. Bitmine Immersion Technology: 833,000 ETH
2. SharpLink Gaming: 521,000 ETH
3. The Ether Machine: 345,000 ETH This model is replicating the coin holding strategy of publicly listed companies in the Bitcoin space, creating a new paradigm of institutional-level holdings.

Strict Leverage Warning: Vitalik Buterin Draws the "Gambling" Red Line to Prevent Liquidation Waterfall Impact

Despite affirming the value of the model, Vitalik Buterin issued a sharp warning about potential risks: "If in three years someone tells me that treasury companies caused the collapse of ETH... I guess it must be that they turned into an overly leveraged gambling game." He is concerned that if the price of ETH plummets, it could trigger massive forced liquidations by treasury companies, creating an on-chain cascading effect, accelerating the decline and destroying market confidence.

Vitalik Buterin specifically distinguished this from the 2022 Terra collapse: "We are not talking about Do Kwon's followers," implying that current ETH Holdings institutions have a stronger risk management awareness. This statement aims to curb the spread of DeFi nested leverage in the institutional Holdings sector.

Market synchronization verification: institutional coin holdings and prices are in a positive cycle.

During the interview, the ETH trading price was around $3930. The holdings of treasury companies continue to grow, resonating with the coin accumulation strategies of publicly listed companies in the Bitcoin space (such as MicroStrategy), indicating that digital assets are being rapidly incorporated into corporate balance sheets. This trend provides institutional-level buying support for ETH prices, but Vitalik Buterin's leverage warning injects a wake-up call for market risks.

[Conclusion] Vitalik Buterin's dual attitude towards the Ethereum treasury company outlines a critical balance point for ecological development: on one hand, encouraging institutions to enter through compliance channels, injecting tens of billions of dollars in liquidity to anchor ETH; on the other hand, defining risk boundaries with severe rhetoric against "leveraged gambling" to prevent a repeat of the 2022 Terra-style tragedy. As holdings giants like Bitmine continue to increase their positions, the market needs to closely monitor two key indicators: the on-chain leverage ratio of treasury companies and the distribution of liquidation thresholds. If institutions can adhere to the bottom line of risk control, this model may become a core channel connecting traditional capital and Web3 assets; conversely, it could lead to the "self-destruction engine" that Vitalik Buterin predicted. The institutional path of Ethereum is steadily advancing on the tightrope of value and risk.