Arthur Hayes has exited Maelstrom’s directional crypto positions, and on-chain analysts are monitoring about $26 million in token gross sales.
In an Oct. 24 assertion, Hayes mentioned he had taken earnings on Ethereum (ETH), Ethena (ENA), Uniswap (UNI), and different cryptocurrencies, citing mounting macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty.
The choice follows blockchain analytics agency Santiment’s Oct. 23 report of Ethereum’s largest each day web change outflow in additional than 4 months, a sample it in contrast with a June native backside.
Hayes abandons bullish Ethereum positions amid market uncertainty
On-chain analyst EmberCN reported that Hayes offered about $26 million in cryptocurrencies, with Ethereum accounting for practically three-quarters of the entire.
The transactions included 8,000 ETH value roughly $19 million, 14 million ENA valued at $3 million, and 323,000 UNI value $2 million.
Further disposals concerned 1,890,000 Ether.fi (ETHFI) tokens valued at $1 million, 547,000 Aerodrome Finance (AERO) tokens value $400,000, 120,000 Pendle (PENDLE) tokens valued at $240,000, and three million Zama (ZAMA) tokens value $210,000.
Hayes described the trades as profit-taking; the greenback estimates come from EmberCN.
“I feel we gotta go all the way down to go up,” he wrote, including that situations appeared unsure throughout the macroeconomic and geopolitical panorama.
He mentioned he would stay on the sidelines till market situations offered a clearer sign to renew buying and selling.
The choice represents a considerable shift from the bullish positioning Hayes outlined in September.
In his Sept. 2 funding outlook, the Maelstrom chief funding officer maintained a $10,000 year-end goal for Ethereum, alongside worth expectations of $0.5 for ENA and $2 for ETHFI.
These forecasts depended closely on his expectation that monetary stress in Europe would finally power the Federal Reserve to extend greenback liquidity, creating favorable situations for cryptocurrency costs.
Hayes additionally described Bitcoin as Maelstrom’s structural long-term holding, whereas Ethereum and chosen decentralized finance tokens represented extra speculative positions.
His newest announcement signifies that he has deserted these near-term directional bets, though it doesn’t set up that Maelstrom liquidated its longer-term Bitcoin publicity or different investments.
The reversal comes forward of the Federal Reserve’s Oct. 27–28 coverage assembly, when buyers will obtain one other indication of the central financial institution’s method to rates of interest and monetary situations.
Santiment flags Ethereum’s largest change outflow in 4 months
In an Oct. 23 evaluation, Santiment reported that roughly 169,770 ETH had left exchanges on a web foundation throughout a single day, the biggest such withdrawal in additional than 4 months.
Santiment interpreted the decrease change stability as much less instantly accessible provide for sellers, probably easing promoting strain if demand stabilizes.
Santiment highlighted a comparable episode on June 5, when roughly 223,800 ETH left exchanges as Ethereum reached its lowest worth since April 2025.
That earlier motion coincided with an area market backside, after which the cryptocurrency staged a speedy restoration.
The analytics agency prompt the most recent withdrawal spike may assist one other restoration, particularly if outflows persist whereas Ethereum stays inside its present buying and selling vary.
Transfers to personal wallets, custody companies, or staking preparations can scale back change balances with out essentially representing contemporary shopping for demand. Santiment’s Oct. 23 outflow report preceded Hayes’ Oct. 24 gross sales announcement.
Furthermore, the withdrawals have emerged throughout a interval of persistent weak point in Ethereum’s market efficiency.
Santiment recognized $2,400 because the fast pivot. It mentioned a sustained transfer above $2,500 would strengthen its bottoming thesis, whereas a fall beneath roughly $2,330 would weaken it.
