Bitcoin Whale Who Shorted October Crash Reemerges with Bigger Long Position

He's back—and betting bigger.

That Bitcoin whale who nailed the October crash with a perfectly timed short? He just resurfaced on the radar. This time, he's flipped the script entirely, deploying a massive long position that dwarfs his previous market plays. It's a stark pivot from bear to bull that's got the entire crypto ecosystem watching.

From Short Seller to Long Believer

The move signals a dramatic shift in conviction. Where he once profited from panic, he's now positioned to capitalize on a potential surge. This isn't just a trade adjustment; it's a full-scale strategic reversal executed by one of the market's most watched entities.

Reading the Whale's Signals

Whale movements are the ultimate sentiment indicator—real money voting with its wallet. A position this size isn't placed on a whim. It suggests deep-pocketed players see a fundamental runway for growth, perhaps seeing past the short-term noise that spooks retail traders. It's the kind of cold, calculated bet that makes you wonder what they know that the rest of the market is still figuring out.

One cynical take? It's a classic finance playbook move: help engineer the fear, profit from the crash, then use the proceeds to buy the dip you helped create. Rinse, repeat, and let the narrative do the rest.

Whether this is a genius foresight or a spectacular misstep, one thing's clear: when the whales move, the market listens. Buckle up.

The 1011 whale, identified as Garrett Jin, was suspected of trading on insider information when building the October short position, just hours ahead of one of the year’s biggest crashes. This time around, the whale’s positions are even larger than the previous market short. 

Unlike other whales on Hyperliquid, the 1011 whale rarely sees deliberate counter-trading and attempts at getting liquidated. The whale returned at the end of November, building up an ETH long position first, then moving in to bet on a BTC expansion. 

He also placed limit orders on ETH at the $3,030-$3,150 range, and a SOL order at $138.6. ETH traded at $3,245.29, while the whale was ready to buy a dip with the expectations of a recovery. SOL was at $138.84, hovering just above the whale’s buying range. 

BTC whale returns as the market faces another crossroad

The BTC whale returned at a time when the crypto market faced another period of uncertainty. BTC recently dipped below $90,000, but managed to recover above $92,000 again ahead of the weekend. 

The BTC fear and greed index is still at 29 points, with limited change in the past days. BTC open interest remains low at around $28B, down from its usual range of around $33B in the past months. 

The involvement of the 1011 whale may signal a shift in market direction. The one potential triggering event may be the weekly options expiry on Deribit, which usually precedes bigger price moves on the weekend. 

Options traders remain cautious of another dip to $85,000 or as low as $80,000, but the market also shows the capability of quick rallies. 

The 1011 whale has a higher entry price for the BTC long, at $91.506.7, while most traders took long positions in the $88,000 range, based on the liquidation heatmap. For now, the 1011 whale is ready to deposit more collateral and pay high funding fees to keep the positions.  

BTC whale moves funds to a new wallet

The BTC whale also started shifting some of his holdings to new wallets. On December 11, the whale moved 5.152K BTC to a new address. 

The remaining known wallet, also closely watched for activity, holds another 9.34K BTC.

At this point, the whale’s intentions remain unknown. The 1011 whale has previously traded for significant short-term gains, without signaling belief or holding commitment. 

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