BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes has sold all of his HYPE and NEAR holdings, warning that financial markets could be nearing a major top. The move has surprised many in the community, especially as Hyperliquid’s HYPE token has remained one of the strong performers while the overall crypto market crashed hard.
Despite Hayes’ exit, HYPE has continued to hold firm and is currently trading near its all-time high of $67.
In a post on X, Hayes revealed that he had sold his entire HYPE and NEAR positions.
On-chain data shows Hayes transferred approximately $18 million worth of HYPE to market maker Flowdesk. The sale comes just weeks after he publicly backed Hyperliquid and even placed a $100,000 wager that HYPE could become one of the best-performing major cryptocurrencies by the end of the year.
Despite the sale, HYPE remained resilient. The token continued trading above key resistance levels near $67 and entered what traders describe as a price-discovery phase, showing little sign of panic selling.
Hayes pointed to several factors behind his decision. Firstly, he believes higher energy prices linked to the Iran conflict and global inventory restocking could increase inflationary pressure.
At the same time, he expects three major AI-related IPOs between now and the early third quarter to attract significant investor capital.
Hayes also suggested that U.S. President Donald Trump could take a tougher stance on artificial intelligence ahead of the midterm elections if it becomes politically advantageous.
Lastly, he said these factors could pull liquidity away from risk assets and potentially set the stage for a market peak between now and September.
Therefore, he wrote its’ “Time to take profit.”
The timing of Hayes’ exit comes as investor behavior across crypto markets continues to shift.
While Bitcoin ETFs have recorded more than $4.3 billion in outflows over the past 13 trading sessions, capital has continued flowing into Hyperliquid-related products. Data shows HYPE investment products attracted nearly $3 million in fresh inflows on June 3, extending a 15-day inflow streak.
Over the past month, HYPE gained roughly 24%, while other cryptocurrencies fell by around 10 to 14%.
For now, Hayes said he plans to rotate part of his capital into Bitcoin and will provide a detailed explanation on the decision in an upcoming essay titled Reality Test.
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