Bitcoin Whale Resumes $1B Sell-Off on Hyperliquid

A major Bitcoin whale, notorious for unloading 36,000 BTC in August, is back in action—this time transferring more than 1,100 BTC to crypto exchange Hyperliquid, sparking fresh concerns about market volatility.

Dormant for 8 Years, Then $4B in Sales

According to on-chain tracker Lookonchain, the whale moved 1,176 BTC from two wallets before selling. While this latest transfer is far smaller than the August fire sale, it’s significant given the whale’s history.

In August, the same address stunned the market after liquidating 35,991 BTC—worth about $4.04 billion at the time—following more than eight years of inactivity. The proceeds were rotated into 886,371 Ethereum (ETH), purchased via Hyperliquid. After that, the whale went quiet for two weeks.

The latest activity began just as Bitcoin briefly reclaimed the $116,000 level, its highest in two weeks. As of press time, BTC is trading at $114,765 on Binance.

What’s Next: Two Possible Scenarios

Analysts see two likely outcomes:

1. More Bitcoin Selling – If $116,000 is seen as a profit-taking sweet spot, the whale could continue unloading larger tranches. Without sufficient buy-side demand, this price could harden into a resistance level.
2. Rotation Into Altcoins – Just like August’s move into ETH, the whale may again rotate into alternative assets. Early flows suggest this might already be happening. Lookonchain reported that Galaxy Digital scooped up over 1.2 million Solana (SOL)—worth more than $300 million—in a single day last week.

Market Context

Bitcoin had been gaining momentum after last Thursday’s US CPI report, which helped prices recover above $116,000. But a weekend correction has left BTC oscillating between $115,000–$116,000. Traders now have their eyes glued to whale activity, knowing just a few thousand coins hitting the market could swing sentiment sharply.

For now, the whale still controls roughly 49,000 BTC across four wallets—a stash that could fuel further turbulence if unloaded.