Whale opens a 3x leveraged ETH short position with 30 million USDC, betting on a recent upward trend

Large Short Positions Surface

According to the latest news, trader pension-usdt.eth has just deposited nearly 30 million USDC into their contract account and immediately opened a 3x leveraged ETH short position. Currently, this trader’s ETH short holdings have increased to 453 ETH (approximately $1.425 million), betting on the decline of Ethereum with real funds.

Scale of Operation and Risk Exposure

Capital Scale Analysis

This operation involves a substantial amount of funds. The 30 million USDC deposited as margin, under 3x leverage, controls an ETH position of about $90 million. Based on the current ETH price of $3,143, this is equivalent to a short position of approximately 28,600 ETH.

Risk Exposure Assessment

Using 3x leverage for shorting means this trade is highly sensitive to price fluctuations. With a current holding of 453 ETH, if ETH’s price rises by 10% to $3,457, the position would face an unrealized loss of about $679,500. Such high-leverage operations typically indicate that the trader has a clear view of the price direction but also bears the risk of liquidation.

Market Context and Comparison

Recent ETH Performance

According to data, ETH has recently shown a clear upward trend. It increased by 6.93% over the past 7 days, 1.37% in the last 24 hours, and currently stabilizes around $3,143. This sustained upward movement provides the background for pension-usdt.eth’s decision to short.

Contrasting Whale Operations

Interestingly, market opinions on ETH are not unanimous. Data shows that “1011 Flash Crash Short Seller” has been holding a position for 29 days with an overall unrealized profit of $434,000, with SOL long positions contributing $2.076 million in unrealized gains, while their 203,340 ETH long positions are unrealized at a loss of $1.238 million. This indicates even professional traders have differing views on ETH.

Meanwhile, whale 0x218 increased their ETH short position to 18,875 ETH on January 2nd, with an unrealized loss of $476,000 but earning $537,000 from funding fees. This suggests that traders shorting ETH can partially hedge their price risk through funding income.

Trader’s Logical Inference

Why choose to short at this point?

After ETH’s 6.93% weekly increase, pension-usdt.eth’s decision to establish a short position may be based on:

• Technical analysis: potential short-term correction or resistance
• Funding considerations: excessive long positioning could lead to reversal volatility
• Cost considerations: earning funding fees to hedge part of the risk

Significance of Capital Reserve

Depositing 30 million USDC instead of fully utilizing leverage indicates that the trader is reserving funds for potential margin calls. This cautious approach suggests that even while betting on ETH’s decline, they are preparing for extreme scenarios.

Follow-up Focus

The future movement of this large short position warrants close observation. If ETH continues to rise and breaks key resistance levels, pension-usdt.eth may face margin calls or stop-loss pressures. Conversely, if ETH indeed pulls back, this short could become a successful large-scale market operation. Additionally, the funding fee earnings of such whale operations can reflect shifts in market sentiment between bulls and bears.

Summary

pension-usdt.eth has invested 30 million USDC to establish a 3x leveraged ETH short position, reflecting differing market views on Ethereum’s recent rally. In the context of ETH’s 6.93% increase over the past week, this large short position indicates that some professional traders anticipate a price correction. High leverage entails high risk and high reward; the subsequent trend depends on whether ETH can continue to break above resistance. This also reminds investors that whale operations are often based on complex technical and funding analyses, and single-directional judgments may face reverse risks.