Author: Luke, Mars Finance

Recently, the "50x leveraged whale" on the Hyperliquid platform (the address starts with 0xf3 and is nicknamed "Insider Brother" by the community) shocked the crypto market with its high-profile operations and amazing returns. With high leverage, precise timing and multi-platform strategies, he made a net profit of about 22 million US dollars in a few months, including 2 million US dollars plundered from the Hyperliquid treasury HLP (Hyperliquidity Provider) through "cross-position" operations, which caused heated discussions. This article will use the timeline as a clue to detail its trading trajectory, deeply analyze the operation methods, recalculate the profits and losses based on the clear profit of the closed position, and present the accumulated profits and losses in the form of a table. Finally, it reveals the reaction of the market and the platform, outlining a unique crypto game.

Timeline and Operational Interpretation

March 2-3: BTC and ETH long orders start with huge profits

The legend of Insider Brother started in early March. According to Lookonchain monitoring, he went long on BTC and ETH with 50x leverage on Hyperliquid, catching up with the price surge caused by Trump's crypto reserve announcement, and closed most of his long positions in just one day, making a profit of more than $6.8 million. This precise operation laid the foundation for his huge profits, and the market began to pay attention to this mysterious trader.

March 10-12: ETH/BTC long orders and “short position” peak

From March 10 to 12, the whale's operation reached a climax, and the most controversial scene was staged. On March 10, he completed two ultra-short-term long positions on ETH with a 100% win rate, making a net profit of $2.2 million. On March 12, he deposited $5.22 million into Hyperliquid and opened long positions on ETH and BTC at $1,884.4 (liquidation price $1,838.2) and $82,003.9 (liquidation price $61,182) with 50x leverage. Subsequently, he converted his BTC position into an ETH long position, adding 10 million USDC margin, and his position increased to 140,000 ETH (about $270 million), accounting for 24.65% of the platform's total ETH position, with a floating profit of $3.1 million.

The dramatic turn of events occurred between 17:05 and 17:08. According to Hyperscan data, the whales tried to withdraw cash continuously without closing their positions. First, they failed due to "exceeding the single limit", and then withdrew $17 million in two transactions (8 million and 9 million USDC), exceeding their 15.23 million USDC margin. The remaining positions were quickly liquidated, and at 17:08, 140,000 ETH were taken over by HLP at $1,915. As the price of ETH fell to $1,910 during the liquidation, HLP incurred a loss of about $4 million, while the whales locked in $2 million in profits and left. This "penetration" operation shocked the community, and Hyperliquid immediately announced that the maximum leverage of BTC and ETH would be reduced to 40 times and 25 times, respectively, in an attempt to fix the loophole.

March 13-14: Cross-platform expansion and LINK turmoil

On March 13, the whale extended its tentacles to GMX, opened a short order of 45.17 million US dollars in ETH, and at the same time went long on the ETH/BTC exchange rate on Hyperliquid, accurately seizing the opportunity when the exchange rate fell to 0.0228, and made a profit of 2.15 million US dollars. The next day, he switched to LINK, invested 14.98 million US dollars to buy 506,000 LINK (cost 13.93 US dollars), and opened 10x to 23x long orders on Hyperliquid and GMX, and closed the position after the operation and made a profit of 1.27 million US dollars. However, the 20x LINK long order was liquidated at 13.6857 US dollars, with a loss of 1.07 million USDC. The market was abuzz, and Hyperliquid quickly reduced the LINK leverage limit from 20x to 10x, showing its vigilance against whales.

March 15-17: BTC short orders dominate and rules tighten

Starting from March 15, the whale focused on BTC short orders and opened a position in Hyperliquid with 40x leverage, with the scale increasing to US$330 million. The floating profit once reached US$6.2 million, and then stopped profit at US$5.6 million through TWAP. He also opened a 44.97x BTC short order in GMX, with a total scale of US$194 million, and a clear stop profit of US$3.05 million at this stage. Hyperliquid announced on March 15 that its trading volume exceeded US$1 trillion and increased the margin ratio from 5% to 20%, aiming to constrain high-leverage players. Market sentiment fluctuated accordingly, and investors began to worry about the platform's liquidity risks.

Deconstruction of operating methods

The trading methods of the whales are like precision machinery, bold and delicate, combining high-risk strategies with the clever use of rule loopholes. The following is a detailed analysis of its core methods:

High leverage drive and event capture

• Leverage selection: The whale focuses on 50x leverage, which is the highest multiple allowed by Hyperliquid, and can turn small fluctuations into huge gains. For example, at the end of February, he made a profit of $6.83 million on ETH/BTC longs, showing his mastery of high leverage. Even if the platform later lowered the leverage, he still flexibly adjusted it to 40x (such as the BTC short order on March 15) to maintain high profit potential.
• Event-driven: He reacts very quickly to macro events, such as the ETH/BTC long position after Trump's remarks at the end of February, which made a profit of $6.83 million in 24 hours. This ability may come from the early perception of news or a deep understanding of market sentiment, and even trigger speculation of "insider trading".

Multi-platform collaboration and fund scheduling

• Cross-platform layout: The whale does not rely solely on Hyperliquid. On March 13, he opened an ETH short order on GMX and went long on the ETH/BTC exchange rate on Hyperliquid, forming an arbitrage combination. On March 14, he borrowed 110,000 LINK (US$1.54 million) from Aave for spot and contract operations, demonstrating the ability to integrate resources on multiple platforms.
• Funds Scheduling: His fund management is efficient and flexible. Before the “margin call” on March 12, he added 10 million USDC margin to push his ETH holdings to 140,000; on March 15, he added 3 million USDC to his BTC short position to avoid liquidation risks. This method of dynamically adjusting margins ensures the stability of high-leverage positions.

Dual-wheel drive of spot and contract

• Strategy design: Whales often push up prices through spot trading and then use contracts to amplify profits. On March 14, he invested $14.98 million in LINK to buy 506,000 LINK (cost $13.93), and then the price rose to $14.6. With 10 to 23 times more orders, he closed the position and made a profit of $1.27 million. This combination of "spot pull + contract leverage" makes full use of market depth and leverage effect.
• Execution details: He bought LINK in batches on CowSwap (such as 5 million and 500,000 US dollars orders) to avoid a one-time impact on the market and ensure that costs are controllable. This delicate operation shows his deep understanding of liquidity.

Quick entry and exit and "short position" arbitrage

• Short-term rhythm: Whales are good at seizing short-term fluctuations to make quick profits. On March 13, he went long on ETH with 50x leverage on Hyperliquid and earned $2.15 million in just 40 minutes; on March 16, he took a profit of $3.05 million on a short BTC order. This fast-in-and-out rhythm maximizes profits and reduces risk exposure.
• "Short position" technique: The operation on March 12 was his most unique technique. When his long ETH position had a floating profit of 3.1 million US dollars, he withdrew 17 million US dollars of USDC, exceeding the margin by 15.23 million US dollars, causing the remaining position to be liquidated. When HLP took over the position, it incurred a loss of 4 million US dollars due to the decline in ETH prices, while he locked in a profit of 2 million US dollars. This strategy took advantage of Hyperliquid's rule that allowed the withdrawal of floating profits, transferred the liquidation risk to the platform, and became its "killer weapon" for plundering liquidity.

Risk management and strategy adjustment

• Stop profit and stop loss: The whale is not blindly aggressive. After the LINK long order was liquidated on March 14, he quickly reduced the leverage from 20x to 10x to avoid further losses. On March 17, he closed 108 BTC short orders through the TWAP (time-weighted average price) strategy, reducing the market impact and ensuring that $5.6 million was pocketed.
• Adaptive adjustment: In response to changes in platform rules (such as the increase in margin ratio on March 15), he switched from 50x leverage to 40x and added 44.97x positions in GMX, demonstrating his flexible response to environmental changes.

Profit and loss details (only calculate the profit of closed positions)

A tall tree attracts the wind - Whale hunting team assembles

The huge profits and "short position" operations of the whales have set off huge waves in the market. Rumors of "insider trading" at the end of February cast a mysterious veil on him, and after HLP lost $4 million on March 12, the community called him a "liquidity predator" and worried that similar operations would shake the foundation of the market. Crypto KOL @Cbb0fe quickly posted a post to recruit a "whale hunting team" to encircle the whale. Only half an hour later, he posted a picture saying that Tron founder Justin Sun joined the action, showing the community's strong backlash against his influence.

Hyperliquid took action one after another, first lowering the leverage limits of BTC and ETH to 40x and 25x on March 12, and then limiting the leverage of LINK to 10x on March 14. On March 15, it announced that the margin ratio would be increased from 5% to 20% in an attempt to fix the loopholes in the rules. However, the liquidity of the platform has been severely hit: on March 13, HLP lost $3.23 million due to taking over 160,000 ETH long orders, and the capital pool dropped from $486 million to $351 million, a drop of 27.7%; the loss of $4 million on March 12 further exposed its mechanism defects - allowing the withdrawal of floating profits and not restricting large leverage orders, making HLP a "cash machine" for whales.

Conclusion

From the low-key trial in February to the "slot" plunder in March, Hyperliquid's 50x leveraged whale has written a high-risk, high-return legend with a net income of approximately US$22.62 million, including US$2 million plundered from HLP. He conquered the market and "plundered" with high leverage, event-driven and rule loopholes, and can be called a predator of crypto trading. However, this game also sounded the alarm: LINK liquidation and HLP's huge losses revealed the double-edged sword nature of high leverage. The community's "whale hunting" action and Hyperliquid's rule adjustment indicate that the siege of such players has begun. In the future, whether the whales can continue to ride the wind and waves, or fail in the siege, remains unknown. For ordinary investors, this is both a breathtaking performance and a profound warning: in the game between whales and platforms, retail investors may only be able to sigh in despair.