Abraxas Capital, Wintermute Build $600 Million Bitcoin (BTC) Short Book on Hyperliquid

Basis Trade Revival Draws Institutional Shorts

Bitcoin's (BTC) violent rebound from roughly $62,000 to beyond $77,000 in a matter of days flushed about $3 billion out of leveraged derivatives positions — and it has simultaneously reopened one of crypto's most dependable arbitrage trades. On-chain data shows that market makers and proprietary trading desks, including Abraxas Capital, Fasanara Capital and Wintermute, have quietly accumulated hundreds of millions of dollars in perpetual short positions on Hyperliquid, the on-chain derivatives exchange. Their combined bearish book now stands at 3,425 BTC, worth approximately $265 million, alongside 138,569 ETH valued near $338 million — more than $600 million in total short exposure across the two largest crypto assets.

The positioning is not a directional bet against the rally. Funding rates — the periodic payments that tether perpetual futures prices to spot — have swung firmly positive, and shorts sit on the collecting side of every payment. The funding-rate dashboard on Coinglass shows Bitcoin perps transferring roughly 0.01% per eight hours across major venues, with aggregate readings near 0.0109% per hour. Annualized, that is high-single-digit yield — meaningful passive income for desks running nine-figure books. Derivatives data further shows that Bitcoin's 30-day average annualized funding rate had climbed back to 6.7% as of Aug. 24, with the 7-day average at 8.7%, after sitting near or below zero through much of February-July while the market digested deleveraging. That funding flip matters beyond the arbitrage desks: it signals leveraged longs are dominant again on the largest proof-of-work asset and its rivals.

Abraxas appears to be hedging on the spot side too. On-chain records show the firm withdrew 73,872 ETH — about $173 million — from Binance over the past four days, a pattern consistent with a crypto whale accumulating spot inventory to pair against perp shorts. CME Bitcoin futures open interest, meanwhile, has jumped from roughly 87,000 BTC to 122,000 BTC in recent weeks, and hedge funds on the venue have flipped net long — a notable break from the net-short posture cash-and-carry structurally demands, hinting some institutions now want outright upside exposure rather than market neutrality.

Yen Breach and Hawkish Fed Pricing Cap the Rally

Bitcoin is holding just under $78,000 in Monday's Asian session, down under 1% in 24 hours and up roughly 1% for the week. The broader tape is softer: Solana and dogecoin led the altcoin decliners at about 3% each, with ether, BNB, zcash and tron within 2% of flat — though the weekly split is stark, with Solana up around 8% and dogecoin down roughly 10%.

The macro backdrop is doing the capping. The yen breached 160 per dollar in Tokyo on Monday, a level traders watch closely for Ministry of Finance intervention; desk models flag trigger zones starting as close as 161 and extending through the 162-163 band. The currency has already retraced more than half the gains from July's record operation, when the United States joined Japan for the first coordinated yen-buying since 1998. Friday's broad dollar advance, meanwhile, followed Warsh's Jackson Hole remarks, and bond investors are now pricing a Federal Reserve positioned to hike rather than cut. That repricing is the same force that pulled institutional money out of spot Bitcoin ETFs across May and June — a stretch that included a sharp one-day inflow reversal. Monday is the final trading session of August, making the month's closing ETF total the key scoreboard: it will show whether the eight-day inflow run survived the shift in rate expectations or ended with it. Japanese regulatory context adds another layer for the market's yen-sensitive flank, with the FSA seeking a record budget to stand up a dedicated Bitcoin exchange oversight office. Traders also flag structural fragility: with funding positive but breakout momentum stalling, crowded leveraged longs raise the risk of a cascade on any dip, while a decisive push higher would force shorts to chase. For readers mapping where the cycle stands, our Bitcoin Rainbow Chart guide offers a simple long-term lens. Readers tracking the market in real time can follow live spot and futures prices on Gate.

Greed Signal Meets Macro Headwind

COINOTAG's own aggregate data frames the tension: our Fear & Greed Index sits at 62/100 — firmly in Greed — while Bitcoin commands 69.1% of our tracked universe and total tracked market cap stands near $2.27 trillion, per our Bitcoin market coverage. Momentum sentiment and macro headwinds are now pulling in opposite directions.