Hyperliquid Whales Show Mixed Signals: BTC Shorts Persist Despite Losses While ETH Positions Get Trimmed

Market pullbacks on August 15 have triggered notable position adjustments among major Hyperliquid traders, according to real-time chain monitoring data from HyperInsight.

Contrarian BTC Betting Continues Despite Mounting Losses

One significant whale wallet (0x5d2f4) is doubling down on bearish Bitcoin bets, adding 853,000 USD to its short position in what appears to be a contrarian move. Despite accumulating substantial losses of 9.02 million USD at current prices, this trader continues shorting BTC at $87.58K, maintaining a liquidation price at 127,873 USD. The persistent short accumulation suggests conviction that downside risks remain, even as red numbers mount in their portfolio.

Strategic ETH Short Reduction Amid Losses

In the Ethereum market, whale activity reveals a different pattern. The 0x7fdaf wallet is actively unwinding ETH shorts—trimming positions by 1.66 million USD and 7.79 million USD across two separate transactions within a 6-hour window. Despite the reduction effort, this whale remains underwater with approximate losses of 5.27 million USD. With Ethereum trading around $2.93K, the liquidation threshold sits at 7,304 USD, suggesting relatively conservative leverage positioning even amid continued short exposure.

ETH Long Position Adjustment

A third major player (0x5648A) is simultaneously reducing long positions on Ethereum, offloading 830 coins (valued near 3.95 million USD). This position shows minimal realized losses at 44,600 USD, indicating a more fortunate entry point with a liquidation price of 4,091 USD.

Market Interpretation

The mixed positioning—with some whales taking continued short bets on Bitcoin while trimming bearish Ethereum exposure—reflects divergent market sentiment among sophisticated traders. Whether this represents smart capital repositioning or overconfidence in bearish conviction remains to be seen as markets evolve.