Trader James Wynn Loses $100 Million as Bitcoin Drops Below $105,000

A prominent trader on the Hyperliquid platform, identified as James Wynn, has incurred significant losses following the liquidation of his Bitcoin long positions. The liquidation occurred as the price of Bitcoin dipped below $105,000, resulting in a near $100 million loss for Wynn. The trader had placed two substantial leveraged long positions on Bitcoin, betting on an upward price movement. However, the cryptocurrency's price decline led to the liquidation of these positions.

On May 30, Wynn's first position, comprising 527.29 BTC valued at $55.3 million, was liquidated when Bitcoin reached $104,950. Shortly after, his second position of 421.8 BTC, worth $43.9 million, was closed as the price of Bitcoin fell further to $104,150. Additionally, on May 29, another of Wynn's positions, consisting of 94 BTC valued at $10 million, was liquidated at $106,330. In total, Wynn's liquidated positions amounted to 949 BTC, with analysts noting that he had lost nearly $100 million over the past week.

The liquidation of Wynn's positions came as Bitcoin prices experienced a significant drop, reaching a 10-day low. The cryptocurrency's price on Coinbase fell to $104,630 during early trading on May 30, although it had dropped even lower on other trading platforms. Wynn had initially increased his leveraged long position on Bitcoin to $1.25 billion on May 24, but the asset's price decline following discussions on tariffs by the US President led to substantial losses.

Wynn's reaction to the liquidation was captured in a cryptic post on X, where he shared a screenshot from the 1999 sci-fi film The Matrix, depicting the main character Neo stopping bullets in mid-air. Despite the significant losses, Wynn still maintains a 40x leveraged long position in a perpetual contract, which was opened when Bitcoin was at $107,993 and is currently at an unrealized loss of $3.4 million.

Wynn first gained attention for his memecoin investments, particularly his gains from the Pepe (PEPE) memecoin. On May 29, before the major liquidation, he described himself as an "extreme degenerate" engaging in high-risk leverage trades, acknowledging the potential to lose everything. He advised others against following his approach, emphasizing that he does not adhere to proper risk management and considers his actions akin to gambling.