Arthur Hayes Joins Fresh Ethereum Whale Buying Wave

Hayes Adds to ETH Position as On-Chain Activity Picks Up

BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes (@CryptoHayes) purchased 1,293 $ETH worth approximately $2.48 million on July 16, according to on-chain tracker Lookonchain. The buy brought his total accumulation on the day to more than 1,900 ETH. The transaction was routed through OTC desks, with Lookonchain noting that Hayes had earlier sent $1.25 million in USDC to Galaxy Digital (@galaxyhq) in exchange for 646 ETH, while a separate $1.25 million USDC transfer was sent to FalconX (@FalconXGlobal), likely for another over-the-counter deal.

The purchase marks a continued return to Ethereum for Hayes. The latest buys follow his sale of 6,000 ETH at a loss of around $606,000 in June. Hayes, the outspoken co-founder of derivatives exchange BitMEX, has been vocally bullish on Ethereum's long-term trajectory, arguing the asset is positioned to benefit from expanding macro liquidity and its central role in facilitating collateral across the decentralized finance landscape.

Three New Wallets Pull 30,000 ETH From Coinbase Prime

The Hayes purchase coincides with broader whale activity in the Ethereum market. According to Lookonchain, three newly created wallets withdrew 30,000 $ETH worth approximately $57.66 million from Coinbase Prime in the hours preceding the Hayes buy. The new wallets receiving the ETH showed no outgoing transactions, suggesting a holding or accumulation strategy rather than an immediate sale.

Coinbase Prime, the institutional trading platform of Coinbase, is commonly used by large investors, hedge funds, and corporate treasuries for secure custody and trading. Withdrawals from the platform to fresh wallets are generally read by market participants as a bullish signal, as they reduce the supply of tokens readily available on exchanges. Recent data showed Ethereum's exchange supply ratio declining to 0.129, a level last seen in 2016, indicating that more ETH is moving away from centralized exchanges.

The accumulation activity extends beyond Hayes and the three new wallets. Amid extended sideways price movement, a separate whale withdrew 30,010 ETH worth $52.84 million from Coinbase Prime, while Lookonchain reported two additional buyers: one new wallet pulled 8,239 ETH worth $14.5 million from multiple exchanges and another purchased 11,843 ETH worth $20.8 million. Whether sustained demand at this scale can produce a durable price recovery for Ethereum remains to be seen, but the concentration of large-wallet buying in a short window is drawing attention across the market.

Sources:
AMBCrypto: Ethereum Whale Accumulation Data
Yellow.com: Ethereum Whales Pull 87,083 ETH From Exchanges
Bitcoin.com News: Ethereum Whales Load Up