BitMEX exchange co-founder and former CEO Arthur Hayes reported yesterday, June 4, 2026, that he has completely liquidated his financial positions in the HyperLiquid (HYPE) and NEAR (NEAR) cryptocurrencies.
“I withdrew all my funds from Hyperliquid and its vicinity,” said the businessman, explaining the reasons for such a decision.
Before we continue, let us clarify that HYPE serves as the native cryptocurrency of the Hyperliquid network and also has its own decentralized trading platform. NEAR is the digital asset of Near Protocol, a network designed for the development and execution of decentralized applications (dApps).
Reason for sale Directly responds to the analysis of macroeconomic factors and international geopolitical tensions. As Hayes himself explained, the main catalyst is the significant increase in global energy prices resulting from the current international war conflict with Iran.
This international energy crisis is forcing countries to allocate resources to urgently rebuild their strategic fuel stocks. Adding to this complex panorama is the proximity of three mega-IPOs directly or indirectly related to artificial intelligence (OpenAI, Anthropic, SpaceX). It consists of large stock exchange listings of companies in the technology sector..
Financial experts predict that the opening of these stock markets will absorb available liquidity between this month and the beginning of the third quarter of this year. Similarly, Hayes said that U.S. President Donald Trump May take an “anti-AI regulation” position for political purposes This is to strengthen Republican candidates.
This election strategy is an attempt to gain position for the United States’ next midterm parliamentary elections scheduled for November 3, 2026. In this context, the analyst calculates that “market highs will be recorded between the current date and September.”
For this reason, he concluded, the businessman decided it was appropriate to “start accumulating positions gradually without the pressure of locking in profits and maintaining positions.” Following his statement, data analysis by Onchain Lens confirmed that Mr. Hayes had sold 247,334 units of HYPE and an undetermined amount of NEAR.
Hayes’ announcement drew immediate criticism from, for example, Arthur Chong, CEO of investment fund Defiance Capital. The executive criticized Hayes’ strategy, calling it “typical of a man who over-manipulated his position.” In this statement, Cheong directly pointed out that BitMEX’s co-founder made a technical mistake by operating overly short-term.
The liquidation also contradicts the optimism Mr. Hayes himself expressed on May 30 when he predicted exponential growth in assets. That day, an analyst posted on his official channel: “Hype at $150, TradFi is hell, Clarity Law is hell.” This is a US bill that seeks to establish a clear regulatory framework for digital assets. The crypto industry is actively evaluating the project to provide legal certainty, but Hayes rejects this.
Hayes’ positive stance on HYPE was backed up by a $100,000 bet with Multicoin Capital co-founder Kyle Samani. Funds will be donated to a charity of the winner’s choice, and the agreement states that “From February 10, 2026 to July 31, 2026, HYPE will outperform any shitty coin with a market cap of over $1 billion.”
The market reacted to Hayes’ words.
Both cryptocurrencies (HYPE and NEAR) rose in price amid the overall market decline, but after Hayes’ explanation, prices reacted with a pullback.
HYPE fell 4.7% in the past 24 hours to trade at $61.after reaching an all-time high of $75 on June 1st.
at the same time, NEAR recorded a daily decline of 13%, with the price falling from $2.33 to $2.03.. Divestments carried out by individuals with superior capital mobility can change the short-term expectations of small merchants.
(Tag translation) Altcoin
