Arthur Hayes denied buying HYPE after an address linked to him withdrew 33,979 HYPE tokens from Bybit on June 8. The withdrawal, worth about $2.09 million, quickly fueled speculation that he had reversed a recent exit from the token.
Hayes answered the rumors on X with four words: ‘I didn’t buy shit.’ The response came after Lookonchain flagged the withdrawal and Onchain Lens said the wallet held 34,066 HYPE at the time.
Hayes sold all of his HYPE and NEAR holdings on June 4. He said he expected a crypto market peak before September.
He linked that view to higher energy costs from the Iran crisis. He also pointed to three large AI company IPOs that could pull liquidity from crypto into equities.
He added that Donald Trump could become anti-AI during the midterms. That view formed part of his broader market warning.
The sale drew attention as Hayes had previously backed HYPE. In May, he named HYPE, ZEC, and NEAR among Maelstrom’s highest-conviction holdings. He also said Bitcoin could reach new highs.
So when the June 4 sale hit the market, traders reacted fast. HYPE fell more than 11% after the announcement and traded below $65.
The sell-off also triggered liquidations in HYPE perpetual markets. As leveraged positions closed, downside pressure increased and added to the token’s losses. At the same time, HYPE faced another challenge from a major token unlock. On June 6, 237 million tokens became available to key contributors.
That unlock represented about 23.8% of the total supply. It also accounted for 71% of all token unlocks across the crypto market that week.
Read More: Arthur Hayes Launches $250M Maelstrom Fund to Acquire Crypto Firms
After Hayes denied making the purchase, HYPE saw a brief dip in trading volume. The price stayed relatively stable after the denial. Social media reactions stayed mixed. Some users criticized Onchain Lens for attributing the wallet without full proof. Others questioned Hayes’ denial and wanted more detail.
The story also showed the limits of on-chain attribution. Wallets linked to public figures often rely on probabilistic analysis, not direct confirmation. A transfer may also reflect an internal move or activity from another user sharing the same address set.
Hayes remains an influential figure in crypto market sentiment. Earlier this year, he called a Bitcoin bottom near $60,000 and said the coin could reach $126,000. He also repeated his support for HYPE, ZEC, and NEAR as speculative choices.
Arthur Hayes denied buying HYPE after an address linked to him withdrew tokens from Bybit. The move followed his earlier HYPE exit, a major token unlock, and wider market pressure. Traders should watch on-chain data closely and verify wallet attribution before reacting.