The cryptocurrency market experienced a significant surge following Donald Trump’s announcement of the Crypto Strategic Reserve, with Bitcoin (BTC) leading the charge by surpassing $90,000 once again. Amidst this bullish trend, a trader made headlines for pocketing a staggering $6.8 million from leveraged long positions on both Bitcoin and Ethereum (ETH). While some attributed this success to luck, others raised suspicions of insider trading.
According to data from cryptocurrency analytics website HyperDash, the trader initiated the long bets on March 1 by depositing $5.9 million in USD Coin (USDC) on the decentralized derivatives market Hyperliquid. The trader then opened a long position on Bitcoin when it was trading at around $86,033, followed by closing a series of positions between $87,512 and $91,399. Subsequently, a long position on Ether was established at 2:49 PM UTC on March 2.
The market witnessed a sudden surge in values after Trump’s announcement of the Crypto Strategic Reserve, leading to the creation of cryptocurrency positions worth $200 million with just $4 million due to 50x leverage. The trader’s Ether positions began to close 16 minutes after Trump’s statement, leading to the impressive $6.8 million profit.
Despite Trump’s strategic reserve only mentioning XRP, Cardano (ADA), and Solana (SOL), some members of the cryptocurrency community speculated about insider trading due to the timing of the trader’s bets. However, others pointed out that if the trader had insider information, they would have focused on the mentioned assets rather than Bitcoin and Ethereum.
In response to these allegations, a cryptocurrency researcher known as FatMan stated, “I don’t know if it was an insider or not, but it’s also possible for an insider to know the tweet is coming but not know the exact contents of the tweet.” The incident has sparked discussions about the potential risks and implications of insider trading in the cryptocurrency market.
As the market continues to react to external factors and announcements, the case of the trader who profited $6.8 million from Bitcoin and Ethereum raises questions about the integrity and transparency of trading practices within the cryptocurrency industry.