Ethereum News Today: Crypto Whale's $190M Windfall: Luck or Trump Tariff Insider Move?

A massive short trade on Bitcoin and Ethereum by a Hyperliquid whale just before President Donald Trump's surprise 100% tariff announcement on China has sparked allegations of insider trading, with the trader reaping over $190 million in profits. The timing of the trades-executed minutes before Trump's October 10 announcement-has drawn scrutiny from on-chain analysts, who suspect the whale may have had advance knowledge of the policy shiftHow One Trader Made $160 Million Shorting Crypto^[1].

The trader, identified through on-chain data analysis, opened leveraged short positions on Hyperliquid, a decentralized derivatives platform, with $92.84 million in open BTC shorts at 5.38x leverage and $72.33 million in ETH profits after closing those positionsBitcoin Whale’s $160M Short on Hyperliquid Sparks Insider Suspicion^[2]. Bitcoin dropped 7.5% to $112,505.92, while Ethereum fell 12.5% to $3,837.57 within 24 hours of the announcementTrader Who Made $192M Shorting the Crypto Crash is Betting^[3]. Over $17 billion in leveraged positions were liquidated across crypto markets, marking one of the largest single-day liquidation events in historyAlleged Hyperliquid Whale Denies Insider Trading with Trumps^[4].

Speculation intensified when on-chain sleuths linked the whale's activity to Garrett Jin, the former CEO of defunct exchange BitForex. A 40,000 USDT transfer from a wallet associated with Jin's Ethereum Name Service (ENS) address, "garrettjin.eth," was highlighted as a potential connectionHyperliquid Whale Linked to Ex-BitForex CEO Garrett Jin^[5]. However, Jin denied any involvement, stating on social media that the trades were conducted on behalf of clients and that he has no ties to the Trump familyGarrett Jin Denies Trump Ties and Criticizes Crypto Leverage^[6]. "The fund isn't mine-it's my clients'," Jin wrote, adding that the timing was coincidental.

Despite Jin's denial, some analysts remain skeptical. Pseudonymous researcher Stephen Findeisen (Coffeezilla) noted the whale's trades were placed just one minute before Trump's tweet, calling the timing "incredible luck"Alleged 'Trump Insider Whale' Denies Insider Trading, Opens New^[7]. Others, like on-chain investigator ZachXBT, argued the connection is speculative, emphasizing that the only direct link is the 40,000 USDT transferBitcoin Plunges After Trump Confirms 100 Percent China Tariff^[8].

The controversy has reignited debates about excessive leverage in crypto markets. Jin criticized exchanges for offering high leverage on volatile assets, suggesting the industry needs stabilization mechanisms akin to U.S. equity markets to prevent future crisesHyperliquid Whale Who Made $150 Million with Short Bet Opens^[9]. His comments followed the collapse of $19 billion in leveraged positions, with over 1.6 million traders affectedDid Trump’s Tariff Trigger A Crypto Purge Or Just A^[10].

While the U.S.-China trade tensions remain a focal point, the incident underscores broader concerns about market integrity. Hyperliquid's transparency, which allows public visibility of large positions, has amplified scrutiny of such trades. The platform's Auto-Deleveraging (ADL) mechanism, designed to prevent insolvency, exacerbated the selloff by liquidating profitable positions to cover lossesTrader Who Made $192M Shorting the Crypto Crash is Betting^[11].

Trump's tariff announcement, framed as a response to China's "aggressive" trade stance, has reshaped macroeconomic expectations. Economists warn the policy could raise U.S. inflation by 0.6–0.8 percentage points, complicating the Federal Reserve's efforts to balance growth and inflation targetsTrump’s new 100% tariffs on China triggered a $19 billion crypto^[12]. Meanwhile, crypto markets remain volatile, with Bitcoin hovering near $115,000 as investors weigh the long-term implications of the selloffBitcoin Price Slips to $114,800 as US Tariff Shock Triggers Crypto^[13].

The case highlights the precarious interplay between geopolitical events, leveraged trading, and market psychology. Whether the whale acted on insider knowledge or simply capitalized on predictive analytics remains unproven, but the incident has exposed vulnerabilities in a sector still grappling with regulatory and structural challengesDid Trump’s Tariff Trigger A Crypto Purge Or Just A^[14].