Arthur Hayes loses $241,000 in cryptocurrency market decline and sells ETH

Arthur Hayes once again "bought high and sold low" and sold Ethereum at a loss.

According to tracking platform Lookonchain, last Friday, Arthur Hayes sold 2,364.38 ETH units in exchange for 4.3 million USDC units, which may result in a loss of US$241,000. The sell-off came against the backdrop of an overall decline in cryptocurrencies-the market value of the entire cryptocurrency market has fallen by about 2% in the past 24 hours.

Arthur Hayes (@CryptoHayes) once again staged the "buy high and sell low" operation! In the past two hours, he deposited 2,364.38 ETH in Cumberland and Galaxy Digital in exchange for 4.3 million USDC. His selling price was approximately $1821, resulting in a loss of $241,000 (-5.3%). He had previously bought 7213 ETH units...

The deal was not eye-catching because of its size. What really makes this deal different is that Hayes, former BitMEX CEO and closely watched macro investor, has long been a staunch supporter of Ethereum. His choice to liquidate some of his investments at a loss has sparked new discussion about how investors can respond to the current market downturn.

Sell when the market is already falling

According to Lookonchain data, Hayes sold these ETH at an average price of approximately $1821 each. The tokens were transferred to trading companies Cumberland and Galaxy Digital in approximately two hours and exchanged for USDC.

The deal came on a day when digital currencies were underperforming. The total market value of cryptocurrencies fell by about 2.1% to US$2.25 trillion; Bitcoin was traded at about US$63,000, down 2.7%; Ethereum fell by about 3.1% to US$1860, and CryptoQuant's estimated offer price was US$1,864.85, down 3.56% from the previous day.

Although Hayes 'sell-off accounted for only a small portion of Ethereum's daily trading volume, the deal received key attention as it converted paper losses into actual losses amid low investor sentiment.

Loss trend that began in July

This sell-off marks the end of a downtrend that began a few weeks ago. According to Lookonchain data, Hayes collected 7213 ETH units between July 15 and July 28 for approximately US$13.87 million, with an average cost of approximately US$1923 each. However, even before last Friday's trading, the position was already at a loss. As Lookonchain said, this is not surprising. Hayes is once again "buying high and selling low."

Again, this contrasts with Hayes's image as one of Ethereum's biggest long-term optimists. At the end of 2025, Hayes confidently said: "The upcoming Ethereum bull market will tear the market apart... Maelstrom is making every effort to lay out Ethereum." At the time, he predicted that ETH would reach $10,000 by the end of the year. However, his tone has changed significantly since then. Hayes explained in his article "Reality Check":"But now, the key is to protect your own crypto capital." That means last Friday's deal was not so much an exit from Ethereum as a risk minimization measure in unpredictable market conditions.

This shift is also consistent with Hayes's overall investment philosophy. Historically, he has adjusted his positions many times based on the development of macro events, including some high-profile bullish forecasts. He has accurately predicted several important market bottoms and liquidity-driven upturns, but has also calmly accepted his assumptions when they are too far ahead. The importance of last Friday's deal was its loss, but preparations for making adjustments were consistent with Hayes's attitude.

Weak prices and extended pledge queues

Ethereum still faces conflicting signals. According to data reported by The Block, 41.2 million ETH (approximately 33.8% of the circulating supply) have been pledged, and the validator activation queue has increased to approximately 43 days. However, the increase in queues may not be as optimistic as it seems. Thomas Brunner, head of custody and pledge at Sygnum Bank, told The Block that most of the activity comes from old verifiers receiving rewards, rather than new investors entering the network.

In addition, out of cautious outlook, TD Cowen recently lowered its year-end price forecast for Ethereum to US$2371 from the previous approximately US$3650 due to slower-than-expected regulatory progress related to tokenized assets in the United States.

In this context, Hayes 'sell-off is more symbolic than market impact. The deal itself is insignificant enough to affect Ethereum prices, but because Hayes is believed to be trading based on macro trends rather than short-term fluctuations, traders interpret its actions as insights into changing corporate risk attitudes rather than ordinary whale deals.