A crypto whale closed a $46 million short position on HYPE, the native token of the Hyperliquid exchange, and pivoted to a long position on a basket of assets recommended by former BitMEX CEO Arthur Hayes. The move, tracked by on-chain monitors, underscores how a single large trader can swing market sentiment on relatively illiquid derivatives markets — and how Hayes's public calls still move real capital.
The trade details
The whale originally built the short on HYPE over the past week, betting the token would drop. But this week they reversed course, buying back the entire position and taking a long stance on Hayes's suggested cryptos — a mix of altcoins and established names. The exact assets weren't immediately clear from the on-chain record, but Hayes has recently touted tokens like SOL, DOGE, and certain AI-themed coins in his newsletter and X posts.
The timing isn't great for anyone betting against HYPE. The token's been grinding higher since its launch in late 2024, and the short squeeze might have been painful. A $46 million position is sizable for a single trader on Hyperliquid's order book, which is deep but can still show stress from a flip that large.
Whale tracking is a spectator sport in crypto, but this trade carries real weight. Hayes — a polarizing figure with a track record of bullish calls — still commands attention from traders who follow his macro take. The whale’s move suggests at least one big player agrees with Hayes’s view that the market is tilted to the upside in the near term.
Hyperliquid, for its part, has been quietly amassing volume and liquidity. The exchange doesn't advertise much, but its perp markets for HYPE and a half-dozen other tokens have attracted serious traders who prefer low-latency execution and no-KYC access. A flip like this one can trigger liquidations cascading through the book — though that didn't happen here.
The whale's new long position will be tested as the week closes. Futures funding rates on HYPE remain positive, meaning longs pay shorts to hold. If the whale's bet is wrong, the cost to keep that position open could pile up fast. No further moves have been reported — but on-chain sleuths are watching.
