Crypto millionaire James Fickel has suffered a loss of more than $43 million since January 10, when his debt on decentralized lending platform Aave skyrocketed to $132 million.
As one of the pioneering Ethereum investors and founder of longevity research firm Amaranth Foundation, Fickel lost more than $43.7 million betting on the value of Ether (ETH) against Bitcoin (BTC).
Based on the investments in 2024, Fickel expected the price of Ether to increase against Bitcoin when he borrowed $172 million in WBTC on January 10, according to a September 14 X post by Lookonchain.
“From January 10 to July 1, he borrowed 3,061 WBTC (equivalent to $172 million) from Aave and exchanged it for 56,445 ETH at a rate of 0.05424. From August 7, he spent 12 million USDC to buy 211 WBTC and exchanged 16,000 ETH for 671 WBTC (equivalent to $39.9 million) at a rate of 0.042 to repay his debt on Aave.”
Ether has not held up well against Bitcoin since the start of 2024. According to data from Binance, the exchange rate between Ether and Bitcoin is down more than 24% year-to-date (YTD) and more than 9% over the past month.
ETH/BTC, year-to-date chart | Source: TradingView
Fickel's debt on Aave reaches $132 million
Fickel’s debt on the Aave platform has now grown to over $132 million in WBTC as of September 14, according to data from Debank.
The debt stemmed from his previous belief that Ether would surpass Bitcoin. By borrowing Bitcoin to buy Ether, he executed a strategy that predicted the price of Bitcoin would fall. However, when the price of Ether fell relative to Bitcoin, this strategy resulted in Fickel incurring a large loss.
James Fickel Aave cho vay | Source: Debank
Fickel is famous for investing $400,000 in ETH when it was only worth $0.80, a decision that made him a multi-millionaire in just a few years.
Ether ETF Continues to Struggle as Grayscale ETHE Outflows Surpass $2.7 Billion
Continuous outflows from US Ether ETFs have contributed to the weakening of Ether prices.
Since their trading debut on July 23, ETH ETFs have seen a total of $581 million in net outflows. Grayscale’s fund accounted for the bulk of that, with more than $2.7 billion in outflows, according to data from Farside Investors.
Ethereum ETF Cash Flows (USD, Million) | Source: Farside Investors
Investors had expected Ether prices to surge following the launch of ETFs. Bitcoin ETFs accounted for 75% of new investment in the cryptocurrency as of February 15, when Bitcoin's price surpassed $50,000.
Source: https://tapchibitcoin.io/a-crypto-millionaire-lost-43-million-usd-for-making-an-eth-btc-transaction.html
