Arthur Hayes, the co-founder of BitMEX, bought 1,332.5 Ether — worth about $2.53 million — on July 20, according to on-chain data from Lookonchain. The purchase extends a buying spree that began earlier this month, after Hayes sold 6,000 ETH in June at a roughly $606,000 loss. Ether traded at $1,906, up 1.74% in 24 hours, with a market cap above $230 billion.
Hayes' Ethereum buying spree
The July 20 transaction isn't an isolated scoop. Earlier in July, Hayes acquired roughly 1,939 ETH in two OTC-style transactions. The pattern has drawn attention — critics note that Hayes has a history of publicly praising tokens like HYPE, ZEC, and WLD before quietly exiting those positions. The current accumulation suggests he's betting on Ether despite the recent misstep.
From loss to accumulation
Hayes' June sell-off was a painful one. He unloaded 6,000 ETH at a loss of roughly $606,000, only to reverse course weeks later. The timing isn't great for critics who point to his track record of talking up assets and then bailing. But the buybacks signal that Hayes sees value at current levels — or at least wants to rebuild a position before any further upside.
Ethereum's institutional moment
While Hayes' trading is a personal play, the broader Ethereum ecosystem is racking up institutional milestones. Ethereum's staking ratio hit an all-time high above 33% in late June, per CryptoQuant. BlackRock launched the iShares Staked Ethereum ETF, which locks most of its holdings in staking contracts. Institutions and ETFs held more than 9% of Ethereum's total supply as of last year, and that share has likely grown since.
Tom Lee, chairman of Bitmine Immersion Technologies, argues that Wall Street adoption — not crypto-native speculation — now drives Ethereum's growth. He points to BlackRock's BUIDL fund and Robinhood Chain's use of ETH as a gas token. Standard Chartered's Geoff Kendrick argued that Ethereum treasuries are among the strongest institutional crypto trades, citing staking yield and stronger valuations compared to Bitcoin and Solana.
The question now is whether Hayes' personal buying streak will continue — or whether the bigger story is the steady drip of institutional money that's reshaping Ether's ownership base.
