Ethereum whales place $100 million leveraged bets after market dip

Large holders of Ethereum (CRYPTO:ETH) have opened leveraged positions totaling over $100 million following the recent decline in Ether’s price, which dropped to a one-month low of $2,113 after U.S. airstrikes on Iranian nuclear sites.

According to blockchain data from Hypurrscan, one investor opened a $101 million long position on Ether using 25x leverage at an entry price of $2,247.

This position generated over $900,000 in unrealised profit but came with more than $2.5 million in funding fees.

The investor’s position will be liquidated if Ether’s price falls below $2,196.

Shortly after, another whale withdrew more than $40 million in Ether from Binance, bringing their total holdings to $112 million, as reported by Onchain Lens.

These moves occurred as Ether’s price reacted to escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, with U.S. President Donald Trump describing the airstrikes as a “spectacular military success” and warning of further actions unless Iran agrees to peace.

Since June 13, Israel and Iran have engaged in a series of missile exchanges, marking a significant escalation in the region.

Despite these high-profile bets, most top cryptocurrency traders remain cautious.

Data from HyperDash shows that 64% of the industry’s most successful traders are currently shorting Bitcoin and Ether, while only 36% hold long positions.

“We also still have a lot of market uncertainty, whether it’s macro or war,” adding that most Ether investors are in a “wait-and-see stage,” said Nicolai Sondergaard, a research analyst at Nansen.

Binance Research attributed the recent price drop to geopolitical factors and suggested that further corrections are possible.

“Whether the familiar ‘panic-then-recover’ pattern re-emerges will hinge on how quickly the geopolitical narrative cools,” arecent report from Binance Research stated.

Meanwhile, the amount of staked Ether reached a record high of over 35 million on June 17, indicating that more investors are choosing to hold their ETH for passive yield rather than sell at current prices.

At the time of reporting, the Ethereum (ETH) price was $2,423.76.