Jump Trading moves $277m in Ethereum to exchanges amid market recovery

Jump Trading’s move of a significant amount of Ethereum and packaging of the Ethereum it staked has led to speculation about the company’s intentions.

The Chicago-based trading giant has been actively moving crypto assets, with significant transactions taking place over the past two weeks.

In the latest development, Jump Trading unstaking 11,500 Ethereum (ETH) worth around $29 million from Lido Finance. The amount was moved to an address known as “0xf58,” which the company often uses to deposit ETH onto centralized exchanges.

The transfer led to widespread speculation that Jump Trading was preparing to liquidate its holdings.

According to blockchain data tracker Spot On Chain, Jump Trading converted 16,210 wrapped staked Ethereum into 19,049 staked Ethereum (stETH) in a short period of time.

Despite these moves, however, the firm reportedly still holds 21,394 wstETH worth $63.6 million and 16,292 ETH worth $41.3 million in its wallets. Additionally, there is an additional 19,049 stETH currently in the process of being staked from Lido, according to Spot on Chain.

Earlier updates from the blockchain detective revealed that Jump Trading transferred 17,576 ETH worth $46.78 million to various CEXs in 24 hours. This transfer came solely from its existing ETH holdings, leaving the firm with a significant but reduced share of its total crypto assets that it keeps in wallets.

The company has deposited $231 million worth of ETH to major exchanges such as Binance, OKX, Bybit, Coinbase, and Gate.io over the past ten days.

The company’s activities saw the redemption of 83,091 wstETH worth $341 million into 97,600 stETH, followed by the removal of 86,059 stETH worth $274 million from Lido Finance. This resulted in a net deposit of 72,213 ETH worth $231 million to these exchanges.

These significant moves coincide with Ethereum’s recent market recovery, with the price of ETH fluctuating between a low of $2,423 and a high of $2,546 over the past 24 hours.

This recovery comes after a period of significant volatility for the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap.

But Jump Trading’s massive liquidations have created uncertainty, with some speculating that the company’s actions could lead to further volatility in the markets.

The significant de-staking and transfer of Ethereum to exchanges suggests that the firm may be preparing for more strategic moves that could impact the cryptocurrency’s market performance in the near future.