BitMEX co-founder and Maelstrom Fund CIO Arthur Hayes moved over $2.5 million worth of Ethereum and ecosystem tokens to major market makers, raising questions about whether he is reallocating capital into Zcash (ZEC) amid his aggressive bullish stance on the privacy coin.
Blockchain researcher EmberCN flagged the transfers on-chain and suggested the liquidation activity might be tied to Hayes increasing his ZEC exposure.
Hayes Has Been Openly Bullish on ZEC
Hayes has repeatedly expressed strong conviction in Zcash throughout its explosive rally. On November 15, he posted on X:
“This chart is just so strong I aped more. $ZEC”
ZEC has surged over 700% since October, and Hayes has been among its most vocal supporters.
Breakdown of Hayes’ Transfers
According to EmberCN’s analysis, Hayes sent assets to Flowdesk, FalconX, and Wintermute:
- 520 ETH (~$1.66M)
- 2.624M ENA (~$730k)
- 132,000 ETHFI (~$120k)
- 10 LDO test transfer
These initial moves were followed by larger sell transactions across key tokens.
Follow-Up Sales Reported:
- 260 ETH (~$820,000)
- 2.40M ENA (~$657,000)
- 640,000 LDO (~$480,000)
- 1,630 AAVE (~$290,000)
- 28,670 UNI (~$211,000)
Together, these sales total roughly $2.45 million almost identical to the amount originally moved.
EmberCN questioned if the intent behind the selling was to accumulate more ZEC:
“Is this selling coins to add to $ZEC? He’s been crazily pumping ZEC during this period.”
Why Hayes Is Hyping Zcash
In recent weeks, Hayes has repeatedly argued that ZEC is massively undervalued. He even claimed:
- “ZEC > XRP” in market potential
- Zcash could reach $10,000–$20,000 per coin
- ZEC/BTC pair might hit 0.2, implying a ~$19,200 ZEC price
- Zcash is “Bitcoin with full privacy”
He also revealed that ZEC is now Maelstrom’s second-largest liquid holding after Bitcoin.
Encouraging Self-Custody
Mid-November, Hayes urged users to remove ZEC from exchanges:
“If you hold $ZEC on a CEX, withdraw it to a self-custodial wallet and shield it.”
The statement added to speculation that Hayes sees a major wave for privacy coins ahead and may be positioning himself early.
Is Hayes Positioning for a Bigger ZEC Run?
While Hayes hasn’t confirmed that he’s buying more ZEC, his:
- asset transfers
- token sales
- repeated ZEC commentary
- aggressive price targets
…have fueled speculation that he’s rotating out of ETH and DeFi tokens to double down on Zcash.
For now, blockchain watchers and traders are monitoring his wallet closely as ZEC continues to be one of the most talked-about assets of the season.
