Garrett Jin Rotates Out of HYPE at All-Time Highs, Opens New Position in UNI

On-chain data reveals one of crypto's most closely watched traders has quietly repositioned, exiting Hyperliquid (HYPE) at record highs and opening a fresh position in Uniswap (UNI), signaling a potential rotation into an underperforming DeFi blue chip.

Garrett Jin Sells $13.55M Worth of HYPE

Crypto trader Garrett Jin (@GarrettBullish) has fully exited his position in Hyperliquid's HYPE token, selling:

• 184,102 HYPE
• Value: ~$13.55 million
• Average Exit Price: ~$73.60
• Realized Profit: ~$2.83 million

The sale occurred as HYPE reached new all-time highs, a classic profit-taking move often seen among experienced traders.

Immediately after closing the position, Jin rotated capital into Uniswap (UNI), a token that has significantly lagged behind much of the current crypto market rally.

Smart Money Rotation: Selling Strength, Buying Weakness

The strategy is straightforward:

• HYPE had already rallied approximately 32% before the exit.
• UNI remains well below its previous highs.
• Rather than chase momentum, Jin appears to be rotating into a sector that may have greater upside potential.

Following the HYPE sale, Jin purchased:

• 80,000 UNI
• Value: ~$271,000

Although relatively small compared to his overall portfolio, the trade is viewed as an important directional signal from a high-profile whale.

Why UNI Is Suddenly Attracting Attention

Several bullish developments have emerged around Uniswap:

Rising Retail Interest

UNI recently became one of CoinGecko's most searched cryptocurrencies, indicating growing retail attention.

Historically, increased search interest combined with whale accumulation has often preceded stronger price movements.

Deflationary Supply

Uniswap recently recorded its highest-ever daily burn:

• 134,000 UNI permanently removed from circulation

This occurred through its UNIfication mechanism, where protocol fees require users to burn UNI before claiming rewards, creating ongoing deflationary pressure.

Altcoin Rotation

Many analysts believe Uniswap is well positioned to benefit if capital begins rotating from high-performing assets into established DeFi projects.

Garrett Jin's Current Portfolio

Despite the attention on HYPE and UNI, these positions represent only a small portion of Jin's holdings.

Current reported portfolio includes:

| Asset | Approximate Value | |--------|------------------:| | 1,268 BTC | ~$83.39 million | | 50,013 ZEC | ~$25.2 million | | 80,000 UNI | ~$271,000 |

Bitcoin

Bitcoin remains the largest holding, serving as the portfolio's primary macro exposure.

Zcash (ZEC)

The sizable Zcash position is particularly notable.

Privacy coins have struggled for years due to:

• Regulatory scrutiny
• Exchange delistings
• Weak investor sentiment

Maintaining a $25 million ZEC position suggests Jin expects a catalyst that the broader market may be overlooking.

Why Selling HYPE Matters

Hyperliquid has one of the strongest tokenomics in crypto.

Nearly all trading revenue flows into its Assistance Fund, which continuously purchases HYPE on the open market through buybacks.

Selling despite this structural support suggests Jin believes:

• Much of the bullish narrative may already be priced in.
• Better risk-reward opportunities now exist elsewhere.

Who Is Garrett Jin?

Garrett Jin is the former executive associated with the now-defunct exchange BitForex.

He later became linked by blockchain investigators to one of the largest traders on Hyperliquid.

That trader previously managed positions exceeding:

• 100,000 BTC

making it one of the largest known leveraged crypto trades ever observed.

The Hyperliquid Whale Story

Blockchain investigator Eye linked the ENS domain:

• ereignis.eth

to:

• garrettjin.eth

connecting Jin to large-scale activity on Hyperliquid.

Jin later stated that the funds belonged to clients rather than himself but acknowledged knowing the trader behind the positions.

From Massive Profits to Massive Losses

The whale associated with Jin experienced one of crypto's biggest trading reversals.

Late 2025

The trader reportedly earned approximately:

• $190–200 million

by successfully shorting Bitcoin and Ethereum ahead of a tariff-driven market crash.

Early 2026

The story ended dramatically.

A highly leveraged Ethereum position was eventually closed with losses approaching:

• $250 million

leaving only $53 remaining in the trading account.

The current portfolio therefore represents a rebuilt, more diversified investment strategy.

Broader Market Context

The timing of Jin's move is particularly interesting.

On the day the rotation became public:

• UNI was among the few major assets trading higher.
• Most altcoins were declining.

Meanwhile:

• Institutional demand for HYPE continued growing.
• HYPE ETFs recently recorded one of their strongest inflow days, including approximately $7.4 million flowing into Bitwise's BHYP product.

Even with institutions buying aggressively, Jin chose to exit.

This may indicate he believes the positive ETF narrative has already been fully reflected in HYPE's price.

Binance's CZ Weighs In

Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) also commented on Hyperliquid during the week.

He described the protocol's innovation as:

"Awesome"

while acknowledging it occupies a market niche Binance is unlikely to compete against directly.

Ironically, Jin sold HYPE just as positive sentiment surrounding the project reached one of its highest points.

What Investors Should Watch Next

Several developments deserve close attention:

• Whether UNI can convert growing whale accumulation into sustained price appreciation.
• Continued institutional demand for HYPE following recent ETF inflows.
• Any catalyst that could validate Jin's unusually large Zcash position.
• Broader capital rotation from outperforming assets into lagging blue-chip DeFi tokens.

Key Takeaway

Garrett Jin's rotation from HYPE into UNI highlights an increasingly common pattern in today's crypto market.

Rather than holding winning positions indefinitely, experienced traders are actively rotating between narratives as momentum shifts.

With blockchain transactions visible in real time, ordinary investors can now observe these portfolio changes almost instantly. While following whale trades is never a guaranteed strategy, monitoring capital flows from sophisticated market participants can provide valuable insight into where smart money believes the next opportunity may emerge.