Wintermute Short on XRP as Price Rises 47%

Crypto market maker Wintermute holds substantial short positions on Hyperliquid, even as the market moves upward. According to data from OnchainLens, the firm holds approximately $190.8 million in short positions spread across multiple cryptocurrencies, including Ethereum, Bitcoin, Solana, HYPE and XRP. Those positions are currently sitting on an unrealised loss of around $5.85 million, partly because XRP has risen nearly 47% in value over the past seven days.

In brief:

• Wintermute holds $190.8 million in short positions on Hyperliquid, spread across ETH, BTC, SOL, HYPE and XRP.
• The largest position is in Ethereum ($53 million), followed by Bitcoin ($30.7 million) and Solana ($22.6 million).
• The $10.2 million XRP short position is under pressure from a price rise of nearly 47% in seven days.

Short positions spread across five cryptocurrencies

Wintermute is one of the larger market makers in the crypto sector. The company’s short positions on Hyperliquid are spread across multiple assets. The largest exposure is in Ethereum, with a short position of approximately $53 million. Bitcoin follows with $30.7 million, on the Hyperliquid platform, where significant volume is also traded.

Solana is short for $22.6 million, HYPE for $11.4 million and XRP for approximately $10.2 million. In total, the short positions amount to around $190.8 million.

XRP rises 47% and puts short position under pressure

The XRP short position stands out because the XRP price has risen sharply over the past week. A rise of nearly 47% in seven days makes a short position immediately more expensive, as the expected price decline fails to materialise. In a short position, a trader earns money when the price falls and loses money when the price rises.

The total unrealised losses on Wintermute’s short portfolio currently amount to approximately $5.85 million. Market watchers are now monitoring whether the recent price rises continue and could put more pressure on large short positions, which in theory could trigger a so-called short squeeze, in which short positions are forced to close and prices rise further.

Bitcoin is trading at $77K at the time of writing, up 1.4% in the past 24 hours. The broader Bitcoin rally is also contributing to the upward pressure in the market, in which Wintermute holds short positions.