A long-term Bitcoin holder liquidated their entire holdings this week to invest nearly $300 million in Ether.
The investor sold 550 Bitcoin (BTC), valued at around $62 million, after holding the cryptocurrency for seven years.
Following the sale of their Bitcoin on the decentralized exchange Hyperliquid, they established a long position in Ether (ETH) worth $282 million through three different accounts, according to pseudonymous on-chain analyst MLM.
“Either he received some incredible bullish insider information, or he’s just speculating. The execution appeared hasty and disorganized,” the on-chain analyst commented in a Wednesday X post.
Traders often monitor large movements to gauge short-term market trends.
The hodler’s shift occurred shortly after Bitcoin fell to a near two-week low of $112,000 on Wednesday, suggesting “increasing jitters in the market” ahead of remarks from US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and the Jackson Hole symposium on Friday, which may offer critical insights into September’s interest rate policy, Ryan Lee, chief analyst at Bitget exchange, shared with Cointelegraph.
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Hyperliquid Bitcoin price drops 200bps following $60 million BTC sale
Although the hodler’s $60 million transaction was modest in comparison to other large trades, it was sufficient to create a price dislocation on Hyperliquid.
The $60 million sale led to a 200 basis points (bps) decline in Bitcoin’s price on the Hyperliquid exchange, with Bitcoin “now trading at a 30 bps discount compared to other exchanges,” MLM also noted in a Wednesday X post.
A 200 bps price decrease translates to a 2% price variance, or roughly $2,267 per Bitcoin, based on today’s spot price of $113,370, indicating a notable discrepancy compared to other platforms.
This move may indicate that Hyperliquid’s order books lack the capacity to handle significant trades without considerable price ramifications.
Cointelegraph has sought comment from Hyperliquid regarding the exchange’s liquidity status.
Related: Ether trader nearly lost it all after dramatic rise from $125K to $43M
Hyperliquid achieved a new monthly high of $319 billion in trading volume in July, pushing decentralized finance perpetual futures platforms to a new cumulative peak of $487 billion, Cointelegraph reported on August 7.
In July, Hyperliquid accounted for 35% of all blockchain revenue, capturing substantial value at the expense of Solana, Ethereum, and BNB Chain, according to VanEck researchers in their monthly crypto recap report.
Hyperliquid has risen to become the sixth-largest derivatives exchange globally, boasting over $12 billion in 24-hour open interest, a significant advancement from its 12th place ranking since early April, as per CoinGecko data.
Hyperliquid gained traction in April 2024 after launching spot trading with an aggressive listing strategy and user-friendly interface.
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