This Crypto Trader Made $160 Million Profit During Trump's Market Crash

A cryptocurrency whale has reaped over $160 million in profits after betting correctly on the recent price declines in Bitcoin and Ethereum.

On October 11, 2023, blockchain analytics platform Lookonchain reported that a long-time Bitcoin holder opened more than $1.1 billion in short positions on the top two cryptocurrencies by market Capital .

How Bitcoin's Crash Made This Trader $160 Million Richer

This trader has bet that both assets will fall in value despite their recent bullish momentum .

Within just 30 hours, that prediction was correct—Bitcoin and Ethereum prices plummeted, netting the trader an estimated $160 million in realized profits.

After the sell-off, the trader began closing most of his positions, leaving behind only 821.6 BTC worth around $92 million.

The timing of the move has sparked speculation about whether the whale had early information about upcoming macroeconomic changes that triggered the broader market decline.

On Friday, Trump announced 100% tariffs on imports from China and new export controls targeting key software industries.

The tax, which is scheduled to take effect on November 1, 2023, has spooked investors in both traditional and crypto markets, leading to a widespread sell-off in risky assets.

According to data from BeInCrypto, the Bitcoin price dropped to as low as $105,262 before recovering to $111,052 at the time of writing.

Other major assets like Ethereum, Solana, Dogecoin , and XRP followed a similar trend. Their sharp declines triggered the highest daily liquidation figures ever recorded.

In fact, more than 1.6 million traders were liquidated, wiping out $19.31 billion in positions in just 24 hours, according to data from CoinGlass.

Long-term traders—those who expected prices to continue rising—suffered the bulk of the losses, totaling $16.82 billion. Short-term traders, despite the market decline, lost another $2.5 billion.

Bitcoin accounted for $5.37 billion of the total liquidations, followed by Ethereum with $4.43 billion. Solana traders lost $2 billion, while HYPE and XRP traders lost $890.37 million and $708.24 million, respectively.

Amid the volatility, decentralized exchange Hyperliquid emerged as the largest liquidation site, handling $10.3 billion, or about 53% of the total liquidations. Bybit followed with $4.65 billion, while Binance and OKX recorded $2.39 billion and $1.21 billion, respectively.

The event highlights how geopolitical shocks and large-scale whale transactions can quickly change the dynamics of the cryptocurrency market. In such situations, even seasoned traders can face large losses or extraordinary profits.