Former BitMEX CEO Arthur Hayes bought another $6.39 million in ether (ETH), pushing his total purchases to 7,213 ETH even though the position sits roughly $301,000 underwater. The Maelstrom chief investment officer’s buying streak follows a $606,000 loss he booked on ETH just weeks earlier.
Key Takeaways
Arthur Hayes bought 3,298 ETH for $6.39 million, lifting his July total to 7,213 ETH.The Maelstrom CIO is down about $301,000 on buys averaging $1,923 per ETH since July 15.Ether is trading near $1,900, up 20% for the month as ETF inflows tripled bitcoin’s.Lookonchain flagged the latest purchase within hours of execution, tracing it to a wallet linked to Hayes, the BitMEX co-founder who now serves as chief investment officer of the family office Maelstrom. The accrual brings Hayes’ total since July 15 to 7,213 ETH worth $13.87 million at an average entry of $1,923.
That average puts the position about $301,000 underwater at current prices, which is Hayes’ third documented ETH purchase of the month, following a 646 ETH acquisition through an over-the-counter trade with Galaxy Digital and a 1,293 ETH buy (together pushing his running total past 3,270 ETH).
Hayes is best known for co-founding derivatives exchange BitMEX before stepping down as chief executive in 2021, and he has since built a public track record as a vocal macro commentator, alternating between aggressive crypto accumulation calls and defensive sell-offs tied to shifting liquidity conditions. His trades are closely watched onchain because Maelstrom discloses little about its formal positioning, making wallet-tracking services like Lookonchain the primary window into his activity.
From a $606,000 Loss to a ReversalThe buying spree marks an abrupt reversal from Hayes’ posture in June, when a wallet tied to him sold 6,000 ETH for roughly $10.14 million at an average price near $1,690. That sale locked in an estimated $606,000 loss on ETH he had accumulated weeks earlier at an average entry near $1,793, breaking from his usual pattern of buying weakness and selling strength.
He has since extended a version of that liquidity argument to ether, treating pullbacks like June’s as entry points rather than reasons to retreat.
That inflow gap suggests institutional allocators are rotating toward ether even as individual traders like Hayes navigate the asset with far more volatility in their own positioning. Whether that demand holds will likely shape whether Hayes’ latest bet closes the gap on his $301,000 paper loss or deepens it.
