James Wynn’s BTC Gamble Meets Political Storm

In a market where volatility is constant, James Wynn stood out with an extraordinary maneuver: a long position of 1.25 billion dollars on bitcoin with 40x leverage via Hyperliquid. A controversial figure in speculative trading, Wynn seemed to be riding a bullish wave… until an announcement by Donald Trump about a massive tax against the EU. Within hours, the geopolitical shock reversed the trend, wiping out 29 million dollars in potential gains, a daring bet caught by the reality of the markets.

Extreme risk-taking : James Wynn on a knife-edge

A few months ago, the decentralized platform Hyperliquid narrowly avoided disaster before stabilizing its situation through technical adjustments and rigorous risk management. On May 24, James Wynn, a high-risk trader and now an emblematic figure of this infrastructure, pushed leverage use to its peak with a long position of 1.25 billion dollars on Bitcoin.

He opened a 40x long position on 11,588 BTC, equivalent to 1.25 billion dollars, with an average entry price of $108,243 and an automatic liquidation scheduled at $105,180, according to Lookonchain data.

This extreme bet was made shortly after closing his investment on the memecoin PEPE, which earned him 25.2 million dollars. Wynn then reallocated these gains to his bitcoin bet, shortly after incurring 5.3 million dollars in losses on positions in Ether (ETH) and Sui (SUI).

These portfolio adjustments reflect an aggressive strategy where reactivity and maximum risk-taking seem to outweigh diversification.

The evolution of his bitcoin position, spread over several days, demonstrates a calculated but extremely bold approach, marked by strong market exposure :

• May 21 : initial entry on BTC for 830 million dollars, followed by 400 million in partial gains realized the same day ;
• May 22 : position increased to 1.1 billion dollars, while bitcoin briefly surpassed $110,000, generating 39 million in latent gains ;
• May 24 : position increased to 1.25 billion dollars on 11,588 BTC with 40x leverage ;
• A sale of 540 BTC for 60 million dollars, or 1.5 million in realized gains despite growing market tension.

Wynn, active on Hyperliquid for two months with an initial deposit of 4.65 million dollars in USDC, describes himself as a “high-leverage and high-risk trader”. As such, his trading style is emblematic of a new generation of crypto speculators, ready to face the market rollercoaster with extraordinary risk tolerance.

A political announcement that shakes the giants

The brutal reversal occurred a few hours later, when Donald Trump announced on May 23 his intention to impose a 50 % customs tax on all imports from the European Union.

This statement, perceived as a sign of renewed trade tensions, immediately shook all financial markets, including cryptos. The bitcoin price fell below 107,000 dollars, triggering volatility that melted Wynn’s profits.

This situation caused a net loss of 29 million dollars in a single day, according to HypurrScan data. Other cryptos like Ether were also swept away by the wave, falling to 2,504 dollars, while memecoins collapsed.

Although this loss seems spectacular, it has not wiped out the trader’s overall performance. However, James Wynn still shows a profit of 57 million dollars since launching his operations on the platform, including 46 million made in the past month alone.

However, this sudden drop starkly reminds us that, in such an unstable market, massive high-leverage positions can collapse on a simple political declaration, as unpredictable as it is external to the sector’s fundamentals.

Beyond Wynn’s particular case, this episode raises a global issue: the increasing exposure of the crypto market to global geopolitical dynamics. Like traditional assets, bitcoin now reacts almost instantly to major political events, which increases complexity and risk for investors.

While Wynn has managed to stay afloat, many less experienced traders might not withstand such shocks. As platforms like Hyperliquid attract more high-risk profiles, the question of the system’s resilience against factors amplifying crypto crashes during macroeconomic volatility remains open.