Wintermute aggressively shorting the top ten Crypto Assets including BTC, ETH, SOL, XRP, DOGE! Retail investors need to be wary of market traps.

Recently, the Crypto Assets market has become increasingly volatile, and the well-known market maker Wintermute has quietly adjusted its strategy, aggressively laying out short-term trading of the top ten popular Tokens. In contrast to the mainstream long positions sentiment, Wintermute has turned towards a defensive investment portfolio, making aggressive shorting the new normal. Does this move signal that the market is about to face a new round of Fluctuation? How should retail investors respond to potential risks?

Defensive investment portfolio emerges, short positions account for nearly 70%

According to the latest data, Wintermute currently manages $123 million in Crypto Assets, with nearly 70% allocated to shorting positions. While holding four long positions in Bitcoin, Sui, Dogecoin (DOGE), and the S&P 500 index (SPX), their scale is relatively limited. The largest long position is Bitcoin, valued at $10.38 million (20x leverage), with a return of 13.95%. In contrast, the short positions in TRUMP and XRP achieved astonishing returns of 127.99% and 78.11% respectively, demonstrating Wintermute's ability to accurately seize opportunities during market downturns.

Confidence in altcoins wavers, blue-chip assets are also hard to escape

Wintermute has significantly shorted mainstream blue-chip assets such as Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), and Curve DAO (CRV), reflecting deep skepticism about the short-term trends of altcoins. The ETH short position has reached $26.3 million (15x leverage), and although the current return rate is -27.33%, its firm bearish stance remains unshaken. At the same time, actively shorting small-cap Tokens like Fartcoin (FARTCOIN) and Pump.fun (PUMP) further demonstrates its risk mitigation strategy, focusing on assets with high Fluctuation and low liquidity.

Divergence in the derivatives market, SOL serves as the market's "warning light"

Despite Wintermute shifting to a defensive position, the funding rates for BTC and ETH on mainstream exchanges remain positive, with long positions currently holding the upper hand. However, the financing rate for SOL has turned negative on several exchanges, with open contracts plummeting from $12 billion to $9.14 billion. Wintermute holds a $14.7 million SOL short position, possibly anticipating further declines in the market. If the funding rates for BTC or ETH also turn negative, it may confirm that widespread shorting pressure is brewing.

Small-cap Tokens Become Targets for "Smart Money" Snipers, Retail Investors Must Exercise Extra Caution

Wintermute is actively shorting low market cap tokens such as TRUMP, FARTCOIN, and PUMP. The open interest (OI) in these assets is at a high level, indicating that retail investor speculation remains strong. The OI for TRUMP futures has reached $368 million, and FARTCOIN even higher at $687 million. Although PUMP's price has significantly dropped, its position remains at $434 million. Such market conditions are often exploited by "smart money" to amplify market fluctuations, catching retail investors off guard.

Conclusion

Wintermute's top ten Token short-term trading strategies highlight its contrarian operations and forward-looking risk management capabilities. In the context of increasing market bullish and bearish divergence, and with some asset financing rates turning negative, retail investors need to remain vigilant and cautiously participate in high Fluctuation asset trading. If mainstream asset financing rates simultaneously turn negative in the future, the market may face a new round of severe adjustments. It is advisable to closely monitor capital flows and changes in market sentiment to seize risks and opportunities.