Crypto Whale Short Position Hits $34.9M After Strategy Shift

Crypto Whale Short Position Reaches $34.9M After Strategy Change

A major crypto whale has significantly altered its trading strategy, taking a one-sided short position worth $34.9 million in the market. The development was reported on March 10 by monitoring platform HyperInsight via Telegram. The whale wallet address beginning with 0xcac previously operated a neutral arbitrage strategy across global crypto derivatives platforms but has now switched to aggressive short positions. The move came after Bitcoin fell below the $73,000 price level, prompting the trader to increase bearish bets across multiple assets. Analysts say the shift highlights growing caution among large traders as volatility returns to the crypto market.

Crypto Whale Short Position Expands as BTC Drops Below $73K

Data shows the crypto whale short position now totals approximately $34.9 million, while the same address maintains about $11 million in spot holdings in Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Previously, the trader used a neutral arbitrage strategy that involved selling spot Bitcoin while closing short positions or buying spot while opening shorts to profit from funding rate spreads in perpetual futures markets.

However, after the recent price decline, the strategy changed to unhedged directional shorts, suggesting the whale anticipates further downside in the crypto market.

Key positions include:

20x BTC Short: $15.7M position size, $89,900 average entry, about $4.3M unrealized profit
10x HYPE Short: $11.8M position size, $33.6 average entry, about $0.45M unrealized loss
20x ETH Short: $7.04M position size, $4,011 average entry, about $6.64M unrealized profit

Funding rate settlements from these positions have also generated more than $3 million in additional returns, according to monitoring data.

Crypto Whale Short Position Signals Bearish Sentiment

The crypto whale short position highlights how large traders are positioning themselves during periods of uncertainty. When whales take large short positions, it can influence market sentiment and trigger increased volatility among retail traders.

The growing $34.9M short position may signal bearish expectations from institutional-scale traders, potentially adding pressure to crypto prices in the short term. Let's say Bitcoin continues to struggle below key resistance levels, additional leveraged short positions could emerge across derivatives markets. Market analysts also note that whale activity often precedes broader market moves, making large short positions an important signal for traders monitoring crypto sentiment.