Whale's "Lightning Counterattack" Contradictory Move: Taking Profit on BTC but with a $280,000 unrealized loss on ETH short position

According to the latest monitoring, the on-chain whale “Lightning Counterattack” (0x50b30) today demonstrated a typical long-short contrast operation: closing a BTC long position for a profit of $5,300, while being trapped in a $280,000 loss on ETH short. Behind this seemingly contradictory move reflects the current market divergence between bulls and bears intensifying.

Profit-taking and unrealized loss contrast operation

The whale’s double-sided betting

The latest holdings of this whale show obvious mixed long and short characteristics:

The closure of the BTC long indicates the whale has made a cautious judgment on the short-term trend, choosing to lock in gains during the upward movement. But this does not mean a bearish outlook on the market; rather, it is more about risk management.

Continued pressure on ETH short

More noteworthy is the expanding unrealized loss on ETH. According to relevant data, this whale’s unrealized loss on ETH has been changing:

• 01/12 03:00: Unrealized loss of $949,000
• 01/12 midday: Unrealized loss of $843,000
• Current 01/13: Unrealized loss of $280,000

The unrealized loss has shrunk from $949,000 to $280,000, driven by a rebound in ETH price. Currently, ETH is priced at $3,110.95, while this whale’s average entry price is $3,088.64, indicating the short position is under pressure.

Multiple market signals and interpretations

The true meaning behind the whale’s position adjustment

This operation reveals several key pieces of information:

• BTC bullish confidence is weak: Although profits were taken, the gains are limited ($5,300), indicating the whale has concerns about BTC’s short-term trend.
• ETH short faces pressure: While unrealized losses are decreasing, the whale still holds a 14x leveraged short of 11,694.63 ETH, suggesting their view on the short remains unchanged, possibly waiting for a better rebound point to close.
• Divergence between bulls and bears widens: According to related information, bullish traders are reducing their positions while bears are increasing their holdings in altcoins. This divergence is a precursor to increased volatility.

Comparison with other whales

Based on the latest on-chain data, actions of other whales are also diverging:

• “Strategy Opponent” closed their long position after a retracement, withdrawing about $80 million in holdings.
• “Two Wins in Battle” closed 140 BTC longs, making a profit of $207,000.
• “$20 million Swing Hunter” increased their short positions on altcoins, with unrealized gains of $7.43 million.

This pattern of longs reducing and shorts increasing is reshaping the market’s risk exposure.

Key directions to watch next

This whale’s ETH short position remains highly leveraged. If ETH continues to rebound and breaks through $3,150, unrealized losses could further expand, potentially triggering a stop-loss. Conversely, if ETH falls back below the average entry price, the short position can truly turn profitable.

From the BTC perspective, the trend of reducing longs continues, which may indicate that the upward momentum of major coins is weakening in the short term.

Summary

The latest operation of the “Lightning Counterattack” whale reflects a typical market participant: neither purely bullish nor purely bearish, but adjusting flexibly according to market changes. The combination of profit-taking on BTC and holding ETH shorts highlights rising market uncertainty. Bulls are reducing positions to cut losses, while bears are increasing bets, and this divergence often signals rising volatility. The key going forward depends on whether ETH and BTC can stabilize their current prices; otherwise, high-leverage positions face the risk of chain reactions of liquidations.