A cryptocurrency investor known as the "Hyperunit Whale," whose on-chain assets once exceeded $11 billion, has suffered a catastrophic $250 million liquidation on the decentralized exchange Hyperliquid. This event occurred after the whale opened the largest Ethereum (ETH) long position in Hyperliquid's history.
The whale's strategy involved a significant pivot from a long-term Bitcoin (BTC) holding strategy to aggressive Ethereum accumulation and leveraged positions. The investor had accumulated over 100,000 BTC between 2017 and 2018, holding over 90% of these assets for approximately seven years. At its peak, the BTC holdings were valued at $11.14 billion.
In August 2025, the whale began rotating capital into Ethereum, acquiring 886,371 ETH worth $4.07 billion at the time. Of this, 856,372 ETH (worth approximately $3.94 billion) was staked on the Beacon Chain. This strategic shift is reported to have been influenced by increasing institutional interest in Ethereum, notably following accelerated ETH purchases by figures like Tom Lee.
On-chain investigations by Arkham Intelligence have linked the wallet responsible for the massive Hyperliquid position to Garrett Jin and the firm Trend Research. Analysis reveals a $40,000 transfer between the Hyperunit whale and Garrett Jin, as well as millions of dollars transferred to a Binance deposit address allegedly linked to Trend Research, suggesting the capital belongs to a large-scale institutional structure.
The $250 million liquidation on Hyperliquid was forced by market volatility. However, this represents only a fraction of the whale's total losses. Current estimates place total realized and unrealized losses at approximately $5.7 billion since the peak PnL. This includes roughly $3.5 billion in losses from leveraged ETH positions and on-chain BTC/ETH assets on Aave, and an estimated $2.22 billion in losses from the staked ETH position.
The event has put the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem on high alert, serving as a stark reminder of the risks associated with excessive leverage, even for entities with vast financial resources. Blockchain transparency has allowed the full scale of this financial collapse to be tracked, setting a precedent for on-chain risk analysis.
