Arthur Hayes, co-founder of BitMEX, has drawn market attention after on-chain data showed he moved approximately $19.35 million worth of Ethereum to an unlabelled address on October 15, 2026. According to Arkham Intelligence, Hayes still holds about $27.1 million in ETH on-chain, and there is no clear evidence that the transfer was a sale rather than a wallet reorganization.
Over the past two years, Hayes has reportedly shifted around $298.1 million between his own wallets and transferred roughly $68.5 million in ETH to unlabelled addresses. Analysts noted that moving crypto to unidentified addresses does not necessarily confirm selling, but the size of the transfer has fueled speculation during a broader market downturn.
Separately, Lookonchain reported that Hayes took advantage of lower prices by purchasing three altcoins. The buys totaled approximately $888,000: 546,610 AERO ($460,000), 120,000 PENDLE ($232,000), and 3 million ZAMA ($197,000). Crypto analyst Eric Nicholas Freund, citing Arkham data, suggested Hayes may have resumed altcoin buying after a long hiatus, with estimated start dates before October 14 for AERO, October 15 for PENDLE, and October 10 for ZAMA.
Whale activity also increased during the dip. A whale address that previously sold 2,050 ETH for a $1.08 million profit bought back 6,010 ETH ($14.23 million). Another whale missed a potential $13.5 million gain on BTW after selling too early, while a trader on Aster DEX reported holding short positions with 20x leverage on Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, XRP, and Dogecoin and making over $6.4 million in profit.
