Trader Turns $81M Profit on Insane Ethereum Short—Lucky or Insider?

A crypto trader just pulled off a legendary move, bagging $81 million in profits by shorting Ethereum right before Trump announced new tariffs on China, Mexico, and Canada. As expected, ETH tanked, and this trader’s bet paid off big time.

A crypto trader just made $81 million in profit by shorting Ethereum right before Trump announced new tariffs on China, Mexico, and Canada. As soon as the news hit, ETH’s price dropped, and the trader’s bet paid off massively. He used 50x leverage, meaning even a small price swing in the wrong direction could have wiped him out completely. Instead, he hit the jackpot at the perfect moment.

This isn’t the first time something like this has happened. Back in March 2025, another trader made $6.8 million by going long on Bitcoin and Ethereum right before Trump’s “Crypto Strategic Reserve” announcement. He deposited $5.9 million, opened $200 million in leveraged positions, and cashed out right after Trump’s tweet.

With two perfectly timed trades before major government news, people are suspicious. Some say it’s pure skill, while others believe it’s insider trading. Whatever the case, this trader just made one of the biggest crypto plays of the year, and everyone is watching to see what he does next.

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Ethereum’s Pectra Upgrade Hits Snag on Testnet, Mainnet Timeline Uncertain

Summary: Ethereum’s much-anticipated Pectra update hit a snag in its Holesky testnet deployment on Feb. 24, holding up the originally planned mainnet debut. Developers are working on a fix, but timing remains unclear.

Ethereum’s Pectra update, heralded for such critical improvements as higher staking thresholds, better scaling, and wallet smart features, has encountered trouble. The upgrade went live on the Holesky testnet on February 24 but ran into a critical finalization issue—nodes failed to agree on the next block, halting progress.

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Georgios Konstantopoulos, a key contributor, explained that the problem stemmed from a bug in the deposit contract address, which disrupted block production.Ethereum coders soon set to work creating a patch and getting back to business.

Despite the glitch, the team remains optimistic. “Glad Reth & Erigon went off without a hitch, and in my opinion, NBD for other teams,” Konstantopoulos said, underlining that the ecosystem is going forward together.

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First, the release was to be done in phases, with Sepolia’s testnet going live on March 5 and mainnet on April. With this delay, however, the timeline becomes cloudy. It is being worked on by developers to be addressed as soon as possible, but the Ethereum community will have to wait slightly longer to witness Pectra completely rolled out.

Bybit Hacker Used Binance for Gas Fees Before $1.4B Heist

Summary: One new twist in the Bybit hack is that the hacker used Binance to fund gas charges just days prior to stealing $1.4 billion from the exchange. This raises questions about who the hacker is and if Binance’s records could be used to find them.

The Bybit hack just got even more interesting. It turns out the attacker used Binance to top up Ethereum for gas fees three days before pulling off the $1.4 billion exploit. This detail was uncovered by blockchain analytics firm Lookonchain, adding a new layer to the investigation.

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The fact that the hacker interacted with Binance means there’s a chance their identity could be traced. Security experts at Beosin are urging Bybit to contact Binance to access KYC (Know Your Customer) data linked to the transaction. If the account is legit, it could be a major break in the case.

That said, there’s a high probability the Binance account was purchased on the dark web meaning fake credentials were used, making it a dead end. Only a police investigation, with cooperation from both Bybit and Binance, can confirm if this lead is useful.

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The hack was particularly on Bybit’s Ethereum cold wallet, which emptied 401,347 ETH. The market repercussions are already being experienced, with the price of Ethereum dipping 6% once the news emerged. Everyone is now waiting for Binance and whether their data can be utilized to track the hacker.

Ethereum Gas Fees Hit Record Low, Dropping to $0.40

Ethereum gas fees have fallen to their lowest point since July 5 years ago, reaching as low as $0.40 in the last week. It takes about $0.70 for a straightforward swap on Uniswap, while USDT transfer is as cheap as $0.11, based on Etherscan data.

The drop coincides with Ethereum undergoing critical network upgrades like increased gas limits and the inclusion of blob transactions. Lower fees usually mean less congestion, making it cheaper to use the network.

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At the same time, Ethereum’s price has been struggling. ETH is currently trading at around $2,800, down 15% in the past month, according to CoinMarketCap. Some experts see this as a temporary slowdown before a bigger move.

“When Ethereum fees are this low, it usually means the network isn’t overcrowded,” says Santiment, a market analytics firm. “Reducing gas prices is a bearish indicator of waning activity for some, but it also creates a chance for new users to come into the market.”.

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With transaction costs hitting record lows, it’s becoming cheaper to employ Ethereum-based services and applications. While investors see this as a signal that something is off, others believe it could lead to a new wave of adoption and bring new traffic into the network.

Trump-Linked WLFI Buys 200M Tokens Amid Growing Crypto Reserves—What’s the Endgame?

WLFI, a Trump-affiliated crypto project, bought 200M tokens after withdrawing $10M USDC, stacking assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum.

A Trump’s World Liberty Financial (WLFI) multi-signature wallet recently purchased 200 million WLFI tokens after it pulled $10 million USDC from Binance on Feb. 18. This fresh update, covered by On-Chain Lens, adds fuel to the fire surrounding WLFI—a politically connected crypto project.

WLFI has been bringing in the big money, raising $455 million in token sales. The first sale raised $319 million, selling tokens at $0.015 per token, while the second round raised $136 million at $0.05 per token. Despite it having set itself up as a DeFi lending platform, WLFI has not yet launched any real DeFi services, leaving everyone questioning its real use case.

Observers think this isn’t just about crypto—it’s about leveraging Trump’s political power for financial gain. The Trump family controls 75% of token sales revenue, and Justin Sun (founder of TRON) has become the biggest institutional investor, putting in $75 million.

WLFI is stacking assets, holding $327M across various platforms, with big chunks in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and stablecoins. The latest move signals one thing—WLFI is building a massive war chest, but whether it’s for crypto dominance or something else remains to be seen.

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Ethereum Sees $1.1B Stablecoin Surge as Solana Loses Ground

Summary: Ethereum’s stablecoin supply jumped by $1.1 billion in just a week, while Solana saw a $772 million decline. Analysts say Ethereum’s lower gas fees and technical improvements are driving demand for USDT and USDC on the network.

Ethereum is seeing a fresh wave of stablecoin activity, with on-chain data showing a $1.1 billion increase in USDT and USDC supply over the past week. Concurrently, Solana has witnessed a precipitous fall of $772 million, with questions raised regarding changing market trends.

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Ethereum and Solana dominate the stablecoin market to a great extent, but recent patterns indicate Ethereum taking momentum back, as per blockchain analytics platform Lookonchain. The drop in gas fees and continuous improvements in Ethereum’s infrastructure have made it a more attractive option for stablecoin transactions, bringing fresh liquidity back to the network.

Meanwhile, Solana has lost nearly $780 million in stablecoin supply, with no clear explanation.Others believe network stability problems and changing user needs may be pushing funds elsewhere.

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Data from DefiLlama shows Ethereum still leading the stablecoin market with over $122.9 billion in supply, or 54.63% of the total supply. Solana, however, has just 5.15%—around $11.58 billion.

These shifts reflect the constantly shifting nature of crypto markets, in which small fluctuations in cost, speed, and reliability can quickly influence where consumers would rather transact.

SEC to Evaluate NYSE’s Proposal for Grayscale’s Ethereum ETF Staking

NYSE wants SEC approval for Grayscale’s Ethereum ETF to stake holdings, boosting returns without extra risks, pending regulatory decision.

The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is pushing to let Grayscale’s Ethereum ETFs stake their Ether holdings and earn rewards. If the U.S. SEC approves this move, it could change the game for Ethereum-based ETFs.

Grayscale’s Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHE) and Ethereum Mini Trust ETF (ETH) would stake their Ether, possibly boosting returns for investors while keeping the funds efficient. The proposal, filed on Feb. 14, aims to make Ethereum ETFs more competitive by adding staking rewards.

Grayscale made it clear that staking will bring extra income, but they’re not promising fixed returns. They also clarified that this doesn’t involve “delegated staking” or “staking as a service.” Investors would still be exposed to Ethereum price changes but could earn extra rewards on top.

This move follows similar plans by 21Shares, who recently tried to add staking to its Ethereum ETF. While the SEC initially blocked Ethereum ETF staking in 2024 over regulatory concerns, with a new, potentially crypto-friendly SEC, things could change.

If approved, Grayscale’s ETFs could generate passive income through staking, adding more value for investors while tracking Ethereum’s price. The decision could be a big step in how crypto ETFs evolve.

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Ethereum Foundation Moves 45,000 ETH to DeFi Instead of Selling

Summary: Breaking abruptly from its previous policy, the Ethereum Foundation (EF) has sent 45,000 ETH to the leading DeFi platforms. Rather than selling it outright, the action is meant to support the DeFi community without having any impact on Ethereum’s market stability.

The Ethereum Foundation has allocated 10,000 ETH to Spark, 10,000 ETH to Aave Prime, 20,800 ETH to Aave Core, and 4,200 ETH to Compound Finance. In total, this amounts to roughly $117.62 million based on today’s ETH price of $2,613.68.

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The decision comes following strong criticism from the community after the foundation sold 4,000 ETH straight out in January of this year. The majority grumbled that this sale would negatively impact the price of Ethereum and render the market unstable.

By putting money into DeFi early, EF is betting on decentralized finance and ongoing to gain a return without tampering with market volatility. This also helps the liquidity of protocols like Aave and Compound, which works to perpetuate the DeFi ecosystem.

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The move has been embraced by the Ethereum community because it is consistent with a model of sustainability of managing the treasury of the foundation. Instead of selling ETH in exchange for cash, EF is now effectively investing in the ecosystem that it founded, thus demonstrating its commitment to long-term Ethereum building and construction.

Spiko Introduces Tokenized T-Bills on Etherlink Layer 2

Spiko drops tokenized T-Bills on Etherlink, bringing secure, yield-bearing USD & Euro savings to DeFi. Launch set for February!

Paris-based fintech Spiko is shaking up DeFi by launching tokenized U.S. and E.U. T-Bills on Etherlink, a blazing-fast Layer 2 blockchain on Tezos. This move lets users hold yield-generating assets in self-custodial wallets, giving them secure savings in both USD and Euro—a first in the space.

Spiko is no small player. With $165M+ in assets, their tokenized funds, USTBL and EUTBL, rank among the top real-world assets (RWAs) in crypto. Etherlink’s ultra-low fees, sub-second transactions, and censorship resistance make it the perfect platform for expanding DeFi’s reach. The network already integrates with big names like Arbitrum, Starknet, and Polygon PoS.

Spiko’s CEO Paul-Adrien Hyppolite believes finance should be digital, open, and composable, bridging the gap between traditional markets and blockchain. Unlike most DeFi products, Spiko’s funds follow strict European UCITS regulations, ensuring top-tier security and transparency.

Etherlink is rapidly becoming a leading DeFi hub, welcomed projects such as uranium.io (the first ever uranium marketplace online) and a.etherlink domain service. As Spiko goes live in February, Etherlink is demonstrating that Tezos L2 is here to stay.

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World Liberty Financial Snaps Up $5M in ETH During Market Dip

According to blockchain analytics firm Spot On Chain, the Trump-backed DeFi project, World Liberty Financial (WLFI), just scooped up another 1,917 ETH—worth around $5 million—on February 11.

On-chain data reveals that this latest move pushes WLFI’s total portfolio to a whopping $96.72 million, with over $48 million in ETH alone. In spite of market being volatile, WLFI is still stacking ETH and showcasing a strong and long term confidence and belief in Ethereum’s future.

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Since the start of the year, WLFI has been aggressively accumulating ETH and other crypto assets, now holding a total of 18,549 ETH valued at $48.7 million. This strategy of consistently buying does give a hint of a potential bullish outlook on Ethereum, even of the price is fluctuating. WLFI also announced “Macro Strategy” today its new strategic token reserve aimed at strengthening its foothold in the crypto world.

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“This steady accumulation from WLFI is great for ETH in the long run. If other institutional investors jump in, we could see Ethereum cross $4,000 soon,” a top crypto analyst shared.

Ethereum is already a hot topic, thanks to increased gas limits, the upcoming Pectra upgrade, and growing debates around leadership changes in the Ethereum Foundation.

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