On the first day of the new year, a giant whale投入 8 million USDC: The market signal behind 10x leverage long on small coins

In 2026, an on-chain large transaction drew significant attention. A newly created wallet deposited 8 million USDC into HyperLiquid and established long positions with different leverage multiples across various tokens. This operation occurred on the first day of the new year, making the timing special, and the configuration quite strategic, warranting in-depth observation.

Whale’s Long Position Configuration List

According to the latest news, the operation setup of this wallet is as follows:

This configuration reflects the whale’s differentiated strategy: favoring XPL and PUMP with the highest leverage; secondarily MON; and adopting a relatively conservative 3x leverage on other tokens. This is not blind betting but layered risk management.

Market Sentiment Shift Signal

Transition from Bearish to Bullish

Compared to other whale activities in related news, the shift is quite obvious. At the end of December last year, several whales were actively shorting LIT, with substantial unrealized profits. But entering 2026, this new wallet’s operation is completely opposite—fully turning to long positions.

On the same day, another whale deposited 2.06 million USDC into HyperLiquid, using 20x leverage to go long on mainstream tokens like BTC, ETH, and SOL. This indicates a clear bullish sentiment among market participants on the first day of the new year.

Why choose this timing?

Entering at the start of the new year may be motivated by several considerations:

• New year, new atmosphere; market psychology is relatively optimistic
• Year-end to start of the year is a period with relatively abundant capital
• These smaller tokens may be about to have important events or announcements
• Whales might be positioning for a medium-term bullish outlook

Risks and Opportunities Behind High Leverage

Risks

10x leverage means a 10% drop in token price could trigger liquidation. While 8 million USDC is a sizable amount, under high leverage, any sharp volatility could cause rapid losses. This wallet is newly created, with no historical behavior to reference, increasing uncertainty.

Opportunities

Conversely, if these tokens indeed have upward potential, 10x leverage amplifies gains. The whale’s willingness to adopt such a configuration suggests confidence or informational advantage regarding the short-term trend of these tokens.

Points of Concern

• Fundamentals of XPL and PUMP: Why are these two tokens given the highest leverage? Are there upcoming positive catalysts?
• Future actions of this wallet: Will it continue adding positions or gradually close them? This will impact market liquidity.
• Follow-the-leader behavior of other whales: If more whales follow suit, it could push up the prices of these tokens but also increase risk concentration.
• Liquidation risk: If the market quickly reverses, these high-leverage positions could become pressure points.

Summary

The 8 million USDC operation on the first day of the new year essentially reflects market participants’ bullish attitude towards the start of 2026. The shift from last year’s bearish stance on LIT to bullish on smaller tokens is itself quite interesting. However, high leverage also means risk and opportunity coexist—if the direction is correct, gains can be substantial; if wrong, losses can be swift. The subsequent performance of this wallet, including the price movements of these tokens, warrants ongoing attention. Market sentiment has turned bullish, but whether it can sustain and how far it can go depends on fundamental support.