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James Wynn, the Trader Who Bet $1B on Bitcoin, Is Now Long Pepe
The pseudonymous trader on Hyperliquid closed their billion-dollar notional position for a $17 million loss over the weekend and is now betting on downside.
Updated May 26, 2025, 8:59 p.m. Published May 26, 2025, 8:10 a.m.
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What to know:
- A crypto wallet known for high-stakes trades has shifted focus to pepe (PEPE) with a $1 million bet at 10x leverage.
- Trader "James Wynn" closed a $1.2 billion Bitcoin position with a $17.5 million loss before opening a $1 billion short.
- Wynn announced stepping away from perpetual trading after securing a $25 million profit from an initial investment of over $3 million.
One of the most closely watched crypto wallets in recent weeks is now betting on pepe (PEPE), days after drumming up a record billion-dollar notional position on bitcoin on the onchain trading platform Hyperliquid.
The wallet has gone long on PEPE with $1 million at 10x leverage, flipping from billion-dollar bitcoin trades to high-stakes memecoin bets. The position is already up $500,000 as of European morning hours, with pepe up nearly 6% in the past few hours.
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Pseudonymous trader “James Wynn” — known as “moonpig” on decentralized exchange Hyperliquid — closed their $1.2 billion BTC long position with a $17.5 million loss on Monday.
Wynn then opened a $1 billion short using 40x leverage, effectively wagering their entire $50 million wallet on the downside. Both positions are a record for an onchain platform and represent the biggest bets placed entirely on a blockchain-based service.
Wynn’s new short was opened at an average price of $107,077, and has already netted about $3 million in profit as BTC hovered just below that level Monday, before losing some value.
The trade is a high-risk musical chairs event: if BTC rises above $110,446, Wynn’s position could be liquidated unless additional collateral is posted, data shows.
That position is since closed and Wynn said on X stepping away from perpetual trading altogether. They have netted a total profit of $25 million from an initial above $3 million, the account said on X.
“Now decided to leave the casino with my $25,000,000 profit,” he posted. “It’s been fun, but now it’s time for me to walk away a wynner.”
To all the fans and haters:
— James Wynn 🐳 (@JamesWynnReal) May 26, 2025
We had a good run gambling on perps
At peak the account was up $87,000,000 profits from like $3-$4m.
Now decided to leave the casino with my $25,000,000 profit
It’s been fun, but now it’s time for me to walk away a wynner
Wynn 1-0 Haters… pic.twitter.com/vuUiET2CQZ
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- Bloomberg Intelligence strategist Mike McGlone warns that collapsing crypto prices and a potential bitcoin slide toward $10,000 could signal mounting financial stress and foreshadow a U.S. recession.
- McGlone argues the post-2008 "buy the dip" era may be ending as crypto weakens, stock market valuations sit near century highs relative to GDP, and equity volatility remains unusually low.
- Market analyst Jason Fernandes counters that a drop to $10,000 bitcoin would likely require a severe systemic shock and recession, calling such an outcome a low-probability tail risk compared with a milder reset or consolidation.
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