Arthur Hayes purged his “holy trinity” of HYPE, NEAR, and ZEC as the market fell, but he still holds Worldcoin (WLD) and publicly calls for it to go higher. The data collected on the chain shows why the ones he kept were separated, and what may indicate he is ready to give them up as well.
The three he sold all lined up with where the big money was already headed. Worldcoin is the one place where the positioning still points the other way, and it’s a question worth watching.
What Arthur Hayes sold, and what he kept
Hayes, co-founder of BitMEX, made the announcement on June 4 He sold his entire HYPE and NEAR positionsPromising a fuller explanation in an article titled “Reality Test.”
He pointed to rising energy prices due to the Iran war, a wave of artificial intelligence initial public offerings, and an expected market high between now and September.
A day later, it exited ZEC as well, after a critical error appeared Zcash’s Orchard protected pool. He framed the move as conditional, saying he would reevaluate and could buy back at lower prices if his assumptions proved wrong.
Worldcoin is the possession I hold. Hayes said he is holding on to WLD through SpaceX’s upcoming listing, which his fund is treating as a high-quality proxy for the AI IPO wave.
This leaves one question. If he sold the other three during the crash, what would keep him in Worldcoin, and what would change his mind?
The coins he sold have already been distributed
For every token Hayes took out, the positions of large holders were actually declining, so his stated sales moved with the broader funds rather than against them.
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In NEAR, standing whales are in short supply and retain profit, while exchange flows indicate distribution.
The token’s Smart Money Index, an indicator that highlights the position of informed traders like Hayes, has been extended since early June as the price fell from above $3.08. This aligns closely with the timing of his sale.
HYPE shows the same tendency with more tension. Hyper-liquid whales are net short of about $53 million, while smart traders and public figures stay put for the long haul.
However, exchange inflows exceeded the average by 2.5 times, which is a signal of distribution, and the smart money index turned lower from the $75 area.
Zcash is the only sharded state. Hayes shares sold off after the Orchard loophole and ZEC’s smart money count fell about 4% in 24 hours, moving with it, however the whale pool rose about 11% and the top 100 addresses rose more than 24%, suggesting that large holders were buying into the crash.
In ZEC, he moved with smart money but against the whales, which suited his own hedge that he could buy back.
Why does Hayes still hold Worldcoin?
Worldcoin reflects this pattern. While the three he sold showed distribution, WLD’s position still supports stability, which is in line with its bullish stance.
In Hyperliquid, each WLD group is very long. Public figures, whales and savvy traders all take long positions, in contrast to the short trades in HYPE and NEAR.
The supply held by whales outside exchanges also increased during the last trading hours, from approximately 9.61 billion to 9.63 billion tokens, which is a small accumulation.
The flow picture is mixed but tends to build. Some smart money wallets generated profits across the chain, however exchange outflows exceeded the average, while new wallet inflows rose well beyond normal levels, a sign of the entry of new buyers.
Unlike HYPE and NEAR, Worldcoin is not showing any widespread weakness in flows.
Will he sell? Signal to watch
So now the data is back Hayes’ decision to hold on WLD. The clearest illustration going forward is to put the smart money in WLD. As long as these groups maintain their long positions, the setup supports list retention.
Turning down will change the picture. If WLD’s smart money index starts to decline the way the NEAR and HYPE indices did in early June, this will be the first sign that the coin he held is starting to look like the three coins he sold.
His exit from ZEC shows how quickly he moves once the thesis fails, selling within a day of Orchard’s mistake.
For now, the divide remains. Arthur Hayes sold the three coins, as big money was already heading for the exits. And keep the one in which each regiment is still reclining.
This alignment is what makes his Worldcoin bet coherent rather than contradictory. It also makes it easier to identify an exit signal. The day WLD groups started to change the way HYPE’s and NEAR’s did business was the day the reason for keeping it started to fade away.
Even then, it remains in place, and the site is still with him.
this post Arthur Hayes still holds Worldcoin after market crash: will he sell it? appeared first on BeInCrypto.
