- Whale opened $295 million in ETH longs with leverage up to 10x.
- ETH ETFs attracted a year’s worth of inflows in six weeks.
- Institutional ETH reserves rose from $6 billion to $17 billion in one month.
An old Bitcoin (BTC) whale has moved millions into Ethereum (ETH), marking one of the largest visible portfolio shifts this quarter.
On-chain data show the whale deposited $76 million in BTC into Hyperliquid, sold it, and then opened leveraged long positions in ETH across multiple wallets.
The move comes as Ethereum is outperforming Bitcoin in returns and institutional inflows—a trend some observers are calling the start of an “Ethereum season.”
It also coincides with rising inflows to ETH exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and growing treasury allocations to altcoins.
Whale shifts holdings into Ethereum
According to blockchain analysis firm Lookonchain, the whale originally acquired 14,837 BTC from HTX and Binance seven years ago at an average cost of $7,242 per coin.
That purchase, which was worth $107.5 million at the time, has since grown to a value exceeding $1.6 billion.
Recent transactions show the whale deposited 670.1 BTC—about $76 million—into the decentralized trading platform Hyperliquid.
After selling, the whale opened long positions totaling 68,130 ETH (around $295 million) split across four wallets.
Most positions were taken with leverage up to 10x, amplifying potential gains and losses.
Latest HypurrScan data indicate all of the whale’s wallets are currently showing unrealized losses totaling approximately $1.8 million.
Despite the short-term drawdown, the large-scale reallocation indicates a clear shift toward ETH during a period when ETH is outperforming BTC.
Market data from Coinglass show ETH has delivered a 71.91% return so far this quarter, compared with just 6.28% for BTC.
Ethereum’s gains have prompted analysts to label the current period an “Ethereum season,” where capital is increasingly flowing into ETH rather than Bitcoin.
The momentum appears in market activity, with Ethereum consistently outpacing Bitcoin in daily returns since the start of the quarter.
Institutional rotation fuels demand for Ethereum
Institutional interest in Ethereum has surged. Corporate purchases of Bitcoin for treasury reserves have slowed—only about 2.8 companies per day are adding BTC to their holdings—while Ethereum continues to see steady inflows.
Strategic ETH Reserve reported that institutional ETH holdings rose from $6 billion to $17 billion over the past month, an increase of 183%.
This accumulation signals growing confidence in Ethereum’s market trajectory and its role in the broader crypto cycle.
The whale’s leveraged ETH positions align with this broader trend, suggesting individual and institutional strategies are converging on Ethereum as the leading asset of the altcoin phase.
“Ethereum season” signals the next phase of the altcoin cycle
Ethereum’s rise is widely viewed as part of a broader altseason cycle: capital typically moves into Bitcoin first, then into Ethereum, and finally disperses into other altcoins before the cycle peaks.
With ETH outperforming BTC in both Q2 and Q3 and institutional investments accelerating, analysts now believe the market is entering the second stage of the altcoin cycle.
The whale’s decision to convert part of its BTC into ETH mirrors this trend, and its $76 million bet highlights how long-term holders are repositioning in response to shifting market dynamics.