Key Takeaways
- Whales are shorting crypto with tens of millions of dollars.
- They include “BitcoinOG,” who made $142 million from Friday’s crash.
- Traders and analysts are divided over where the market goes next.
In the aftermath of a major crash on Friday, Oct. 10, traders are divided over where the market will go next.
Those betting on further losses include three Hyperliquid whales who already made a fortune shorting Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Between them, as of Tuesday morning, the three whales held short positions worth over $130 million.
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BitcoinOG Doubles Down on Short Position
Whales shorting the crypto market include an address that made headlines for opening $110 million in short positions on Bitcoin and Ether hours before Friday’s selloff.
Including previous shorts opened the day before, the trader, who has become known as “BitcoinOG” online, made $142 million in profit.
Since then, the BitcoinOG address has doubled down on the strategy, opening short BTC-USD positions worth $66 million early Tuesday.
Previously, the address was linked to Garret Jin, a Hong Kong businessman who founded the now-defunct crypto exchange, BitForex.
After he was exposed by blockchain sleuths, Jin seemingly acknowledged controlling the BitcoinOG Hyperliquid address, but claimed the funds belonged to an unnamed client.
Blockchain analysts have tied the address to a wallet holding 29,321 BTC worth over $3.2 billion as of Tuesday, Oct. 14. The wallet originally received around 93,947 BTC in 2017–2018 from various crypto exchanges, but then remained dormant for years. This pattern of activity has led to speculation that the wallet received laundered or illicit funds.
More Whales Bet Against the Market
While the BitcoinOG address has garnered the most attention, other Hyperliquid whales are making a similar play.
One address currently has unrealized short positions on DOGE, ETH, XRP, and Aster worth over $94 million.
Another trader who has already made millions betting against SOL and ETH has a $41 million short position on SOL.
Traders Split on Where Crypto Goes Next
Beyond the activity of a handful of whales, traders are split on what will happen to crypto markets next.
In recent days, the ratio of long to short positions has fluctuated significantly across major cryptocurrencies.
Those who believe the market will climb higher highlight a mild weekend recovery from Friday’s rout and the ensuing wave of liquidations, which was the largest on record. They argue that Bitcoin remains within a long-term bullish channel and that as long as it stays above key supports, the market still has legs.
On the other hand, there are plenty of bearish signals, including net outflows from exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and sustained macro uncertainty surrounding a tense trade war between China and the U.S.
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