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This morning on the crypto market, all focus is on "Bitcoin Jesus" Roger Ver as reports surface that he has been granted a U.S. pardon in exchange for a $48 million settlement with the Department of Justice.
At the same time, XRP traders woke up to a brutal 3,192% liquidation imbalance, with long positions absolutely "rekt" again, leaving open interest in tatters and reminding everyone once again why leverage on XRP is more like a lottery ticket than a trade.
And just to add fuel to an already chaotic morning, an anonymous Bitcoin OG whale has opened a $600 million short against BTC, using massive leverage. Will the market run him over or prove him right?
Bitcoin price under $600 million whale’s shadow
Bitcoin trades at just above $121,000, drifting sideways after rejecting $124,000-$126,000 , but traders are nervous because of a whale, who has made the entire market his shadow.
This address, already infamous for flipping $5 billion from BTC into ETH earlier this year, has doubled down on bearishness. It loaded up on a $332 million ETH short at 12x leverage, staked with $30 million USDC as margin and then expanded its Bitcoin short to $607 million, increasing leverage from 6x to 8x. This position equals 5,000 BTC at an average entry of $120,761, with liquidation at $133,760.
For now, though, the whale's presence keeps the market split — retail longs are nervously looking at funding rates, while institutional desks are whispering about whether this is a calculated hedge or just suicidal risk.
Figure of the day: "Bitcoin Jesus" Roger Ver Back in headlines
The figure of the day is unmistakably Roger Ver. Known globally as “Bitcoin Jesus” for his relentless evangelism during the early adoption years, Ver later became the face of Bitcoin Cash after the 2017 fork and positioned himself as a challenger to Bitcoin’s dominance.
For years he was in regulatory obscurity, which kept him away from the U.S., but that is about to change as Ver has reportedly cut a deal with authorities to settle allegations of tax evasion, agreeing to pay $48 million.
Some people see this as vindication and think it is better to just write the check and move on. Others, though, see it as a collapse of his radical stance, which Ver had previously defended.
XRP traders face 3,192% bloodbath
The chart of the day is not Bitcoin; it is XRP, and not the price chart. In just four hours, the liquidation imbalance spiked by 3,192%, leaving almost every long trader on the wrong side of the book. Data shows $187,940 liquidated in total, with longs making up $182,230 of that versus just $5,700 shorts.
This means that bulls were the ones taking all the pain, as they found out again that the XRP derivatives market is a minefield, where liquidity disappears instantly and even small moves lead to liquidations.
When positioning becomes too one-sided, the first reversal wipes everyone out, leaving only the most savvy investors to snap up cheap bids. For contrarian players, this kind of situation can present an opportunity, but for most retail traders, it was nothing short of a massacre.
Until XRP reclaims the $3.00-$3.10 range, the scars of this imbalance will continue to affect sentiment.
Evening outlook
- Bitcoin (BTC): Support sits near $120,000, resistance at $123,000. A squeeze above $126,000 could liquidate oversized shorts and trigger a fast rally.
- Ethereum (ETH): With -$8.5 million ETF outflows and a fresh whale short, ETH faces heavier downside pressure. The $2,940 support is critical.
- XRP: After the 3,192% liquidation spike, reclaiming $3.10 would offer relief. Traders should watch liquidation clusters for fresh positioning traps.
- Solana (SOL) & Mantle (MNT): Despite >$1.7 million liquidations each, both tokens held green, suggesting strong underlying demand.
- Macro: Focus shifts to the U.S. session where fresh ETF flow numbers and whale positioning could decide whether BTC stays range-bound or breaks violently.
Dan Burgin
Vladislav Sopov
U.Today Editorial Team