Shorting crypto goes horribly wrong, firm loses millions

On-chain data from market analytics firms Lookonchain and Arkham Intelligence suggest that London-based crypto asset manager Abraxas Capital is suffering almost $20 million in unrealized losses because of shorting multiple cryptocurrencies.

Abraxas Capital Management Ltd. manages alternative assets and offers financial investment management and consultation.

Lookonchain reports that two Abraxas accounts have taken large short positions in Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Sui network, and Hyperliquid to hedge their spot positions, resulting in over $190 million in unrealized losses.

The two Abraxas accounts held more than $190 million in unrealized losses, including a short position of 113,819 Ether (ETH) worth $483 million, which is down more than $144 million in unrealized losses.

Abraxas manages approximately $3 billion in assets across a heavily Ether-weighted portfolio estimated at $648.18 million focused on ETH-related assets. It also includes AAVE-wrapped ETH, staked ETH, and restaked ETH, and some positions in Avalanche (AVAX) and other smaller altcoins.

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Liquidations are an important part of crypto markets, where traders often take out leverage against borrowed money to trade, especially when they have no remaining balance to cover losses. 

If that happens, the exchange automatically closes the trade to prevent further downside from the position.

When this occurs, it can impact price movements within the crypto market. If many liquidations occur simultaneously, it can trigger a chain reaction of sudden buying or selling across the market.

Interestingly, Lookonchain also flagged Galaxy Digital (GLXY) for moving 224,000 Solana, valued at $41.12 million, to Binance and Coinbase, which combined begs the question of whether Galaxy Digital will sell large amounts of tokens going forward.