Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has received a new airdrop of 6.29 million STRK tokens, valued at around $1.01 million.
The latest distribution was made by Starknet, a leading Layer-2 scaling solution built on Ethereum. This marks the second time Buterin’s wallet has been rewarded with Starknet tokens within a year.
Blockchain analysts believe the airdrop is connected to his early investment in StarkWare’s $6 million seed round held in January 2018. That investment made Vitalik Buterin one of StarkWare’s earliest backers and a long-time supporter of its zero-knowledge proof technology.
Previous Airdrop and Transaction Activity
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Lookonchain revealed that a VB-linked wallet earlier obtained 2.1 million STRK tokens, worth approximately $798,000, in 2024. He transferred those tokens to Binance on November 6, 2024, when each token traded near $0.38.
Meanwhile, Buterin has not commented publicly on these transactions. Yet, his long-standing association with Starknet suggests an investment-based connection rather than an active role in project operations.
Starknet Expands with Bitcoin Staking
The airdrop comes as Starknet achieves a new milestone with the integration of Bitcoin staking on its network. This feature enables Bitcoin holders to stake assets directly on Starknet and earn on-chain yields without leaving the platform.
Since its debut, the response has been remarkable. According to Starknet’s team, total staked assets have surpassed $100 million, with Bitcoin accounting for roughly 65% of the total value.
In a statement shared on social media, the project wrote, “Bitcoin staking launch alone boosted total staked assets by more than 65% in under a week.”
Over 100,000,000 dollarinos are now staked on Starknet.
Bitcoin staking launch alone boosted that amount by more than 65% in under a week.
Acceleration. pic.twitter.com/bCQiDEoDDe
— Starknet (BTCFi arc) (@Starknet) October 7, 2025
STRK Token Rallies After Integration
Following the launch of Bitcoin staking, the STRK surged 34%, reaching $0.1602 per token. It is now up over 65% from its all-time low of $0.0969, recorded on June 23, 2025.
According to the latest data from CoinMarketCap, Starknet’s market capitalization is $694.29 million, ranking 107th among global cryptocurrencies.
Buterin’s Endorsement and Ethereum Foundation’s Role
Vitalik Buterin has long been an advocate of Starknet’s STARKs technology, describing it as a powerful solution for Ethereum scalability. In February 2024, he published a detailed review praising Starknet’s smart contract capabilities and its approach to zero-knowledge proofs.
The Ethereum Foundation also contributed $12 million during Starknet’s July 2018 funding round, reinforcing their shared vision for scalable blockchain systems.