By Key Points
- Hyperliquid Money Laundering Fears Rise After Suspicious Trades
- Unusual high-leverage trades on Hyperliquid spark concerns.
- A trader’s $5.22M deposit and 100% win rate raise red flags.
- Analysts link the activity to North Korean hackers and illicit funds.
- Experts debate whether it’s money laundering or high-risk gambling.
Crypto trading platform Hyperliquid (HYPE) is facing serious scrutiny after a series of suspicious high-leverage trades on Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH). The trades have raised concerns about money laundering, insider trading, and potential links to illicit activities.
A single trader has drawn significant attention after depositing $5.22 million onto the platform and executing highly leveraged trades with an almost perfect success rate. According to SpotOnChain, this trader made a $2.2 million profit in just two days, fueling suspicions about the origin of the funds.
A smart/insider whale just deposited $5.22M to #Hyperliquid to open high-risk long bets on $ETH and $BTC!
📊 The trades:
🔹 ETH long (50x leverage) – Entry: $1,884.4 | Liquidation: $1,838.2
🔹 BTC long (20x leverage) – Entry: $82,003.9 | Liquidation: $61,182Notably, in the… pic.twitter.com/OPZLN0eMT7
— Spot On Chain (@spotonchain) March 12, 2025
Blockchain analysts noted that the trader opened a 50x leveraged long on Ethereum (ETH) at $1,884.4, with a liquidation point at $1,838.2. Similarly, they entered a 20x leveraged long on Bitcoin (BTC) at $82,003.9, with a liquidation price of $61,182. Given the extreme leverage and the consistency of winning trades, experts suspect that this is not just luck but possibly a coordinated money-laundering scheme.
Smart traders’ high-risk long bets on Bitcoin and Ethereum. Source: Spotonchain – Techtoken
This development comes at a time when crypto-related financial crimes are under intense scrutiny. Recently, the US House voted to overturn the IRS DeFi broker rule, a move that could impact how authorities track suspicious transactions.
Possible Links to North Korean Hackers and Illicit Gambling
Crypto market analyst AB Kuai Dong has suggested that these trades may be connected to North Korean hackers, who are known for using crypto trading platforms to launder stolen funds. This theory is supported by the anonymity of the Hyperliquid trades and the rapid frequency of the leveraged positions.
Source: AB Kuai.Dong – Techtoken
Another analyst, Ai on X, pointed to previous instances of high-leverage trading wins in early March, where three wallets generated $2.53 million in profit from GMX leveraged trades. These wallets were later traced to gambling platforms such as Roobet and AlphaPo, both of which have been linked to stolen crypto funds.
Adding to the suspicion, Coinbase researcher Conor Grogan discovered that one of the Hyperliquid whale’s wallets was tied to a phishing attack, which funneled funds through multiple accounts before reaching the trader. This same wallet had connections to Roobet, a platform previously linked to laundered funds and illicit crypto transactions.
Hyperliquid (HYPE) Price Performance. Source: Techtoken
The use of crypto trading platforms for laundering money is not new. In recent months, decentralized finance (DeFi) has seen a decline, with DeFi TVL dropping by $45 billion. The fall in total value locked (TVL) suggests that more illicit players may be turning to high-leverage trading platforms like Hyperliquid instead.
A Case of Insider Trading or High-Stakes Gambling?
While some believe the trader had insider knowledge, others argue that it could be a high-risk gambling strategy using illicitly obtained funds. The speed, size, and accuracy of these leveraged bets make it unlikely to be purely random.
The suspicious trades on Hyperliquid also highlight the growing concerns surrounding geoblocking and crypto accessibility. Many US traders have lost over $5 billion due to geoblocking restrictions on crypto airdrops, as reported in a recent crypto airdrop loss analysis. This has led to traders seeking alternative ways to access high-risk, high-reward trading, sometimes through unregulated platforms.
Meanwhile, Hyperliquid’s token HYPE has seen a decline, dropping nearly 8% since the news surfaced. As of this writing, HYPE is trading at $13.35. This mirrors other recent crypto price dips, including the Solana price drop, which has led to increased market volatility.
As authorities and blockchain forensic firms step up their monitoring of illicit financial activities, high-leverage trading platforms like Hyperliquid could face greater regulatory pressure. With cyberattacks on the rise, like the recent Elon Musk X cyberattack, the crypto industry remains under watch for suspicious financial activities.
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