A few interesting on-chain developments in the latest news.
First, where the money is going. A whale withdrew a cumulative 13,080 $ETH from Binance over six days, worth about $29.97 million. The latest withdrawal alone was 3,300 $ETH , worth around $7.42 million. In a nutshell: large amounts of $ETH keep leaving exchanges, which at least suggests that someone isn’t in a hurry to sell. Takeaway: Whale activity is worth watching, but don’t equate withdrawals directly with a bullish outlook—there could be many reasons.
Next, who’s shorting. Wintermute has made a cumulative $222 million on Hyperliquid and currently holds $125.9 million in open positions, including $115.8 million in shorts. Takeaway: Market makers are making a killing, so retail traders should think about who they’re going up against before placing orders. On the same platform, the top whale on the Anthropic pre-market contracts short leaderboard added to their position again overnight, holding $36.95 million in shorts. The average entry price is $1,838, the liquidation price is $2,498.65, and unrealized profits have reached $6.56 million. Takeaway: The trade is going their way, and they’re adding to it—but with the liquidation price right there, it all smells like risk.
Institutions are making moves too. ARK ETF Trust filed documents with the SEC proposing 14 thematic ETFs covering AI, robotics, biotechnology, and tokenized market infrastructure. The lineup includes the ARK Tokenized Market Infrastructure ETF, which would invest in companies focused on RWA tokenization and on-chain capital market infrastructure. Takeaway: Beyond BTC, institutions are still betting on RWA and AI.
Fund flows are looking weak. U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs saw net outflows of $1.2817 billion this week. BlackRock’s IBIT had net outflows of $1.209 billion, while Fidelity’s FBTC bucked the trend with net inflows of $93.1 million. Takeaway: BTC ETFs are seeing outflows overall, but it’s not a complete retreat. Short-term sentiment around BTC isn’t exactly hot.
One last note on the impact of external service providers: Brazilian digital bank Nubank suspended crypto deposits and withdrawals in Brazil due to an issue with an external service provider, while its other crypto products continued to operate normally. Mercado Pago was also affected by an issue at an institution providing risk monitoring and anti-money laundering services. Takeaway: When compliance infrastructure runs into trouble, users’ deposits and withdrawals are the first to get held up. It’s worth keeping an eye on reliance on custodians.
What’s your take on the combination of ETH withdrawals and ETF outflows—is it advance positioning, or simply risk avoidance?
First, where the money is going. A whale withdrew a cumulative 13,080 $ETH from Binance over six days, worth about $29.97 million. The latest withdrawal alone was 3,300 $ETH , worth around $7.42 million. In a nutshell: large amounts of $ETH keep leaving exchanges, which at least suggests that someone isn’t in a hurry to sell. Takeaway: Whale activity is worth watching, but don’t equate withdrawals directly with a bullish outlook—there could be many reasons.
Next, who’s shorting. Wintermute has made a cumulative $222 million on Hyperliquid and currently holds $125.9 million in open positions, including $115.8 million in shorts. Takeaway: Market makers are making a killing, so retail traders should think about who they’re going up against before placing orders. On the same platform, the top whale on the Anthropic pre-market contracts short leaderboard added to their position again overnight, holding $36.95 million in shorts. The average entry price is $1,838, the liquidation price is $2,498.65, and unrealized profits have reached $6.56 million. Takeaway: The trade is going their way, and they’re adding to it—but with the liquidation price right there, it all smells like risk.
Institutions are making moves too. ARK ETF Trust filed documents with the SEC proposing 14 thematic ETFs covering AI, robotics, biotechnology, and tokenized market infrastructure. The lineup includes the ARK Tokenized Market Infrastructure ETF, which would invest in companies focused on RWA tokenization and on-chain capital market infrastructure. Takeaway: Beyond BTC, institutions are still betting on RWA and AI.
Fund flows are looking weak. U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs saw net outflows of $1.2817 billion this week. BlackRock’s IBIT had net outflows of $1.209 billion, while Fidelity’s FBTC bucked the trend with net inflows of $93.1 million. Takeaway: BTC ETFs are seeing outflows overall, but it’s not a complete retreat. Short-term sentiment around BTC isn’t exactly hot.
One last note on the impact of external service providers: Brazilian digital bank Nubank suspended crypto deposits and withdrawals in Brazil due to an issue with an external service provider, while its other crypto products continued to operate normally. Mercado Pago was also affected by an issue at an institution providing risk monitoring and anti-money laundering services. Takeaway: When compliance infrastructure runs into trouble, users’ deposits and withdrawals are the first to get held up. It’s worth keeping an eye on reliance on custodians.
What’s your take on the combination of ETH withdrawals and ETF outflows—is it advance positioning, or simply risk avoidance?