Hyperliquid Whale Challenges ZachXBT's Accusations

• Hyperliquid Whale Faces Charges From ZachXBT.
• $445 million short Bitcoin position sparks controversy.
• Allegations of illicit funds in cryptocurrency trading.

On Tuesday, a showdown unfolded in the cryptocurrency world when on-chain analyst ZachXBT accused the mysterious figure known as the “Hyperliquid Whale” of engaging in cybercriminal activity. Operating under the new X username @qwatio and using the handle MELANIA, the whale was thrust into the spotlight after opening a massive $445 million short position on Bitcoin using 40x leverage. The maneuver, which bet on a drop in the price of Bitcoin, attracted widespread attention and led to a failed short squeeze attempt by other traders.

Despite aggressive pursuit by other market participants, the “Hyperliquid whale” managed to avoid liquidation of his position, closing it with a profit of over $9 million. The ability to stay afloat during such pressure caught the attention of ZachXBT, who expressed concerns about the source of the funds used by the trader.

In response, on Wednesday, the whale took to Twitter to dismiss the allegations, stating in a post titled “RE: Unfounded speculation,” where he challenged ZachXBT to specifically point out which stolen funds were used in the trades. The trader emphasized that his wallet had received thousands of transactions from various sources, many of them questionable.

ZachXBT, for his part, promised to reveal detailed evidence by 13:2025 PM UTC the following day, also highlighting that X’s account @qwatio was recently acquired. In addition, he shared preliminary information indicating that the account received funds from victims of wallet-draining malware in January XNUMX, as well as transfers from potentially illicit sources such as shady exchanges and online casinos, often linked to money laundering.

However, the trader was undeterred, opening a new 5x leveraged long position on the MELANIA token, which he still holds, according to recent data from Hypurrscan.