Key Notes
Former Huobi chief Li Lin partners with early Ethereum backers from Fenbushi, HashKey, and Meitu to create regulated Ether vehicle.
The trust has already secured $700 million in commitments and explores using a Nasdaq-listed shell company for structure.
ETH consolidates below its 50-day moving average at $3,875, though institutional demand could support long-term price appreciation toward $7,000.
A group of Asian executives with deep roots in crypto is setting up a new trust to accumulate , with plans to raise around $1 billion. The effort comes as ETH faces price pressure, trading at $3,875 below its 50-day exponential moving average.
According to Bloomberg, Li Lin, who founded the Huobi exchange and now chairs Avenir Capital, is driving the project. He has teamed with Shen Bo of Fenbushi Capital, Xiao Feng from HashKey Group, and Meitu founder Cai Wensheng.
Notably, these figures were among the first in China to back Ethereum after its 2015 launch. The trust has secured $200 million from Avenir and $500 million from investors like HongShan Capital, with talks underway to use a Nasdaq-listed shell company to help structure the trust.
Colin Wu shared details on X, noting the collaboration aims to build a regulated vehicle for Ether exposure. This aligns with broader trends where early crypto players shift to institutional products offshore.
According to Bloomberg, Huobi founder Li Lin is collaborating with Shen Bo (co-founder of Fenbushi Capital), Xiao Feng (CEO of HashKey Group), and Meitu founder Cai Wensheng, among other early Asian Ethereum supporters, to establish a new digital asset trust aiming to accumulate…
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) October 17, 2025
Li built Huobi into a top exchange before selling it in 2021 amid China’s crypto ban. Shen funded early blockchain ventures, while Xiao’s HashKey holds a Hong Kong virtual-asset license. Cai has backed multiple crypto projects alongside running Meitu.
Ethereum (ETH) Price Analysis Amid $1B Ether Trust
Long-term, this could lift Ethereum’s price by drawing more institutional money, tightening supply, and reducing volatility, based on patterns seen with Bitcoin ETFs. Recent Ethereum ETF inflows remain solid despite the dip, according to Coinspeaker’s coverage on October 16, 2025.
Ethereum’s Q3 2025 rally outperformed Bitcoin, as detailed by Coinspeaker earlier this month. Moreover, analysts eye $7,000 for Ethereum in 2025.
Related article: VanEck Files for Lido-Staked Ethereum ETF With US SEC
Yet, Ether dipped below $3,800 on October 17 despite Bloomberg’s report on Li Lin’s trust plans. As of this writing, ETH is trading at $3,875, consolidating below the 1D50EMA trend indicator for eight days, suggesting Ethereum could be entering bear market territory from a purely technical analysis perspective.
Ethereum (ETH) daily (1D) price chart, as of October 17, 2025 | Source: TradingView
Growing institutional interest and $1 billion demand expectations for long-term hold could change this outlook, although the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap has significant challenges ahead.
