Whale Makes Big Bet on $HYPE as Market Takes a Dip, Holding $3.53M in Spot and Leveraged Long Position
A recent and substantial deposit of 3.92 million $USDC made to #Hyperliquid, a decentralized exchange, by a whale has captivated the crypto community. The blockchain was just as bold as the whale.
It showcased over the past 17 hours this deep-pocketed investor’s significant and confident play to purchase more $HYPE tokens. Despite the current market challenges, this transaction may indicate the whale’s long-term belief in the future of the $HYPE token.
Currently, the whale possesses 241,876 $HYPE on spot, which amounts to about $3.53 million. But this large position is not without its dangers. The whale’s spot holdings are now showing quite an unrealized loss—$1.47 million, to be exact—that’s a 29.4% decrease in value. And okay, we get it: these market movements are totally volatile, and no one holding a huge position in any crypto right now is really safe. But for the HYPE whale, this is some real grief.
A whale deposited 3.92M $USDC to #Hyperliquid to buy more $HYPE and open a long position in the past 17 hours!
Currently, the whale holds:
• 241,876 $HYPE ($3.53M) on Spot, with an unrealized loss of $1.47M (-29.4%);
• 320,333 $HYPE long at $14.46 (3x leverage);
• 5,080… pic.twitter.com/P5hMsSxMMv
— Spot On Chain (@spotonchain) March 10, 2025
A Complex Strategy Involving Leverage and Pending Buy Orders
The strategy of the whale does not confine itself to spot holdings alone. Besides the 241,876 $HYPE on the spot market, the whale has also leveraged a long position in $HYPE. The whale holds 320,333 $HYPE at a price of $14.46, using 3x leverage. This is a picture of a trader who is taking on considerable risk in pursuit of future rewards, especially in a market known for its extreme volatility.
In addition, the whale has two pending purchase orders for the $HYPE token.
The orders are set for a price range between $14.05 and $14.15, which means the whale plans to scoop up more $HYPE if its price drifts down in the near future. Yet, it seems the orders are set with a market dip in mind, because an uptick in price from here through the orders would mean the price of $HYPE is about 125% higher than its current level. If the whale’s two orders are filled, it likely results in yet another accumulation of $HYPE on their part.
Noteworthy is the leverage decision. Leverage lets traders magnify their likely gains by borrowing money to increase the size of their bets—but it also magnifies losses when the market moves against them. Right now, when the price of $HYPE is hovering at a loss, the whale’s leveraged position gives them even more risk exposure. Their strategy amounts to watching carefully and hoping. They’re certainly not the only ones doing that right now. If the price of $HYPE declines further, the whale could face far larger unrealized losses or even liquidations if the price drops too much below the entry point.
Market Sentiment and the Whale’s Risky Gamble
The turbulent market conditions for $HYPE present price fluctuations that could mean a quick rebound or further exacerbate losses. Right now, the cryptocurrency’s price movements look more like the latter, with a whale holding the spot position on $HYPE down to the tune of nearly 30%. That’s a lot of unrealized loss. Still, this whale must have some faith in the token because dishing out the funds required to maintain that spot position also incurs a significant opportunity cost.
Cryptocurrency traders and analysts are looking at this whale’s moves closely, as large market players can greatly influence market sentiment. When this whale decides to add more $HYPE to their portfolio during a downturn in price, it suggests they’re making a decision based on long-term optimism about the project, its underlying technology, or recent or upcoming developments that could push the price in a much higher direction.
Using leverage introduces an additional risk layer to the strategy, at a moment when we’re already told that many traders and analysts warn against the perils of over-leveraging in a volatile market. Imagine being thousands of dollars in the hole, as it were, for a position with a token that’s plummeting, and then having to cover that position in a liquidation scenario that, for all you know, could be leading into a local bottom.
Even with the danger in play, this whale’s activities are a textbook illustration of how some traders deal with a volatile market: they take a long view and an aggressive stance, wagering that whatever dip prompted the market to nosedive will resolve itself in the medium term and that prices will recover. Whether the resolve is there on any time frame from now to 20224 remains to be seen, but this much is certain: the whale is betting very big indeed on the future of the $HYPE the token. And that’s how it’s going to be for the next few days and weeks.
Conclusion
Recent whale action on #Hyperliquid brings into sharp focus the high stakes of crypto trading, especially when it comes to large positions and leveraged trades. The current state of the Hyperliquid whale’s holdings points to one of two things—a huge loss (the Hyperliquid whale being virtually underwater at the moment) or a not-so-disguised way of expressing confidence in the future of not just Hyperliquid, but in the future of trading on Layer 2 solutions and possibly the future of crypto as a whole.
Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any Metaverse crypto coins.
