Ethereum short pays off: Whale profits $58M as market downturn deepens

An Ethereum whale is sitting on $58 million in unrealized profit after shorting ether at $3,220.

ith Coinglass data showing cryptocurrency liquidations exceeding $1 billion amid a fresh market crash, many traders faced massive losses. However, as Bitcoin ( BTC ) and altcoins plunged, one trader who shorted Ethereum ( ETH ) is positioned for significant gains.

The whale shorted ETH with 50x leverage, taking the position as the top altcoin traded at $3,220. 

According to data Lookonchain shared by Lookonchain on X, the trader currently holds $58 million in unrealized profit, including funding fees. This comes as ether dropped below $2,400. On Feb. 25, the leading altcoin by market capitalization fell by double digits, reaching a low of $2,337, its weakest level since September 2024.

On Feb. 3, Lookonchain highlighted another whale’s short position that yielded more than $30 million in profit. That trader also used 50x leverage, and as ether declined, their position moved into an unrealized profit.

Ethereum has faced significant downside pressure over the past few weeks, with the latest drop coinciding with increased exchange inflows. Whale Alert reported that 50,000 ether was transferred from an unknown wallet to Kraken.

On Tuesday, on-chain data showed that BlackRock deposited 18,168 ether, worth over $44 million, to Coinbase. The asset manager also deposited 1,800 bitcoin, valued at about $160 million, to the U.S.-based exchange. Solid Intel reported the BlackRock transactions on X.

In contrast to the ETH whale who went short, Lookonchain earlier highlighted a Bitcoin whale that lost $8.8 million after going long on BTC.

The trader opened a long position when bitcoin hovered around $101,663.

As the flagship cryptocurrency’s price fell below $90,000, the position flipped into an $8.84 million loss on Hyperliquid.