An on-chain investigation by crypto researcher Eye has connected the Hyperliquid whale, controlling more than 100,000 BTC, to Garrett Jin, the previous CEO of BitForex—a now-defunct exchange involved in a fraud scandal.

In a recent post on X, the investigator reported that the whale’s primary wallet, ereignis.eth, was linked to another ENS name, garrettjin.eth, leading directly to Jin’s verified X (Twitter) account, @GarrettBullish.

“The ENS name ereignis.eth (’event’ in German) confirms his link to this wallet, identifying him as the actor behind the large-scale operations on Hyperliquid/Hyperunit,” Eye noted on X.

The wallet activity aligns with Jin’s known business transactions, including transfers to staking contracts and addresses associated with exchanges he previously worked with, such as Huobi.

Additionally, the whale’s wallet was traced to BitForex-related addresses and Binance deposits used to execute substantial trades, including a notable $735 million BTC short.

Crypto researcher links Hyperliquid whale to former BitForex CEO: Source: Eye

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BitForex Accused of Fraud

Jin was at the helm of BitForex from 2017 to 2020. The exchange later faced accusations of inflating trading volumes and was flagged by Japan’s Financial Services Agency for operating without proper registration.

In 2024, BitForex lost $57 million from its wallets, froze withdrawals, and ultimately ceased operations after its team was detained in China. Hong Kong’s SFC later issued a warning for suspected fraud, with users claiming millions in unrecovered assets.

After BitForex’s demise, Jin initiated various ventures, including WaveLabs VC, TanglePay, IotaBee, and GroupFi. Most of these projects have since become inactive.

In 2024, he launched XHash.com, aimed at institutional Ethereum staking, which investigators suspect may have been a conduit for dubious funds. Following these allegations, Jin reportedly removed XHash from his social media bio, even though it still appears on his Telegram account.

Related: MetaMask, Infinex tap Hyperliquid to challenge CEXs in perps market

Not Everyone is Convinced

Crypto analyst Quinten François has expressed doubt regarding the claims that link the Hyperliquid whale to Garrett Jin, suggesting the evidence might be too coincidental.

“Why would you have an .eth name leading to your X handle in a wallet that directly connects to market manipulation wallets and wallets for other crime?” he questioned on X, adding that such a scenario “sounds way too simple to be true.”

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