A Historic Crypto Selloff Erased Over $19 Billion, But Two Accounts Made $160 Million — WSJ

By Sam Kessler, Shane Shifflett and Caitlin Ostroff | Graphics by Rosie Ettenheim

President Trump's surprise announcement of 100% tariffs against China on Friday triggered a cryptocurrency selloff that wiped out more than $19 billion in leveraged positions. Two accounts that placed bets against the market minutes before the news broke scored a $160 million windfall.

Bitcoin dropped 12%, forcing liquidations that triggered even more selling, pushing prices lower. Less popular tokens saw declines as steep as 80%. CoinGlass, a crypto data platform, noted that the scale of the selloff is likely underreported, as many platforms don't publish liquidation data.

While crypto has fallen before, analysts said the sharp downturn exposed the extreme leverage that had fueled a monthslong rally, which began after the election of an administration seen as friendly to the industry.

Last week's plunge also highlights how closely these markets are now intertwined with geopolitics — and how their prices respond to policy decisions from an administration whose members hold large stakes in the very assets they're affecting. The token for World Liberty Financial, a crypto project backed by President Trump and his three sons, fell by more than 30% on Friday.

Ahead of the selloff, two accounts on Hyperliquid, a decentralized exchange that allows investors to make leveraged bets on future crypto prices, placed massive bets that bitcoin and ether would fall. By day's end Friday, the positions were closed for $160 million in profit.

The timing of the trades — the last of which was placed just a minute before Trump's tariff announcement — sparked speculation on social media that they may have been informed by insider information. However, the bets were placed after Beijing announced new restrictions on the export of rare-earth minerals — a move that ultimately prompted Trump's tariff response.

The identity of the trader or traders remains unknown. Hyperliquid didn't respond to a request for comment.

Write to Sam Kessler at sam.kessler@wsj.com, Shane Shifflett at shane.shifflett@dowjones.com, Caitlin Ostroff at caitlin.ostroff@wsj.com and Rosie Ettenheim at rosie.ettenheim@wsj.com