A recently surfaced Bitcoin whale, a significant investor, has continued purchasing Ether, transferring an additional $113 million worth of Bitcoin after being inactive for seven years.
The Bitcoin whale liquidated $76 million worth of Bitcoin (BTC) and initiated a $295 million perpetual futures long position on Ether (ETH), as reported by Cointelegraph earlier Thursday.
The enigmatic whale partially closed his perpetual futures positions and transferred another 1,000 BTC valued at $113 million to the decentralized exchange Hyperliquid, most of which was utilized to establish a long spot Ether position.
The whale currently possesses 55,700 spot Ether valued at over $240 million and an additional 300 BTC worth $34 million in his Hyperliquid account, according to pseudonymous on-chain analyst MLM, who noted that there is also an additional $167 million worth of Bitcoin in his main wallet, which may “likely be transferred to Hyperliquid.”
“Either he caught some crazy bullish insider news, or he’s just gambling. The execution appeared careless and rushed,” commented the on-chain sleuth in a Wednesday X post.
Traders frequently monitor large trades to assess short-term market trends.
The hodler’s activity began shortly after Bitcoin touched a two-week low of $112,000 on Wednesday, signifying “increased anxiety in the market” ahead of US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s upcoming statements and the Jackson Hole symposium on Friday, which are expected to provide crucial insights on September’s interest rate policy, stated Ryan Lee, chief analyst at Bitget exchange, to Cointelegraph.
Some analysts have pointed out a temporary dislocation in Bitcoin’s price on Hyperliquid compared to other exchanges following the whale’s initial sale.
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Hyperliquid Bitcoin price drops 2% after whale’s initial $76 million BTC sale
Although the Bitcoin hodler’s first $76 million sale was relatively modest compared to other large transactions, it was sufficient to instigate price dislocation on Hyperliquid.
The initial $76 million sale prompted Bitcoin’s price to decline by 200 basis points (bps) on the Hyperliquid exchange, with Bitcoin “currently trading at a 30 bps discount compared to other exchanges,” MLM mentioned in a Wednesday X post.
A 200 bps price drop corresponds to a 2% price difference, approximately $2,267 per Bitcoin, based on today’s spot price of $113,370, indicating a significant variance compared to other exchanges.
This suggests that Hyperliquid’s order books may lack the necessary depth to accommodate large trades without causing substantial price fluctuations.
Cointelegraph has reached out to Hyperliquid for comments regarding the exchange’s liquidity situation.
Related: Ether trader nearly lost everything after dramatic decline from $125K to $43M
Hyperliquid achieved a new monthly trading volume peak of $319 billion in July, pushing decentralized finance perpetual futures platforms to a new cumulative record of $487 billion, as reported by Cointelegraph on Aug. 7.
Hyperliquid secured 35% of all blockchain revenue in July, capturing significant value at the expense of Solana, Ethereum, and BNB Chain, VanEck researchers noted in a monthly crypto recap report.
Hyperliquid has emerged as the sixth-largest derivatives exchange globally, with over $12 billion in 24-hour open interest, moving up from 12th place since early April, according to data from CoinGecko.
Hyperliquid gained traction in April 2024 following the launch of spot trading, supported by an aggressive listing strategy and a user-friendly interface.
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