Jump Crypto, the crypto firm of Jump Trading has liquidated huge amounts of Ethereum to centralized exchanges (CEXs) such as Binance, OKX, Bybit, Coinbase, and Gateio, as the crypto market sees a sell-off.
Data from Spot On Chain, a blockchain analytics platform, highlights Jump Crypto has moved 17,576 ETH, valued at approximately $46.78 million, to various CEXs within the last 24 hours.
“Their [Jump Crypto’s] remaining 37.6K $wstETH ($101M) and 11.5K $STETH ($26.3M) still remain in their wallet and under the unstaking process from Lido Finance, respectively,” notes the analytics platform.
[Update] Jump Trading moved another net amount of 17,576 $ETH ($46.78M) to CEX in the past 24 hours!
This solely came from their existing $ETH holding.
Their remaining 37.6K $wstETH ($101M) and 11.5K $STETH ($26.3M) still remain in their wallet and under the unstaking process… https://t.co/fNn4RKejgf pic.twitter.com/Koab3o8ybV
— Spot On Chain (@spotonchain) August 5, 2024
Chicago-based company Jump Trading’s crypto division, Jump Crypto, has been instrumental in these huge Ethereum transactions.
Liquidations Come After Redemption
These recent Ethereum liquidations come after July 25, when Jump Trading reportedly redeemed 83,091 wrapped staked Ethereum (wstETH), worth $341 million, into 97,600 staked Ethereum (stETH).
Following this redemption, they have unstaked 86,059 stETH, equivalent to $274 million, from Lido Finance, a leading decentralized staking platform.
Jump Trading has deposited a net amount of 72,213 ETH, valued at $231 million, into several major centralized exchanges, including Binance, OKX, Bybit, Coinbase, and Gateio.
Sell-Off Echoing 2021’s Crypto Market Collapse
On Monday, Ethereum the second largest crypto is trading down 19% at $$2,356 in the last 24 hours. Bitcoin traded 10% lower at $54,207 at 3:50 UTC.
Jump Trading’s liquidation of significant amounts of ETH raises concerns about potential downward pressure on the asset’s price, it also reflects the liquidity and depth of the crypto market.
These transactions highlight the company’s shift in managing its Ethereum assets, possibly indicating a repositioning of its crypto portfolio or anticipating changes in the market. Moving large volumes. of crypto causes extreme price swings.
Jump Crypto President Steps Down Amid CFTC Probe
In June, Jump Crypto President Kanav Kariya announced that he was stepping down from his position at the Chicago-based company just days after news broke that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) launched a probe into the trading firm.
The CFTC probe on Jump Crypto primarily focuses on its trading and investments across the crypto sector. Founded in 2015, Jump Crypto has experienced several setbacks in recent years, particularly as the U.S. government notched up its regulation-by-enforcement approach to the digital sector.
Commenting on his departure from the firm, Kariya said that he would “stay engaged with the portfolio companies” that he has been involved with while taking “some time to process the unbelievably eventful few years” he has had to lead the trading giant.
The firm came under scrutiny after it was revealed in 2023 that it had made $1.28 billion before the crash of Terraform Lab’s Terra Luna ecosystem, of which Jump Crypto had a market-making arrangement
