Prominent crypto investor, recognized to be Arthur Hayes, the co-founder of BitMEX crypto exchange, has today sold another ETH tokens worth $2 million on Binance exchange to buy certain high quality DeFi tokens. Hayes started rotating out of Ethereum (ETH) last week and moving funds to high quality decentralized finance projects, including Ethena (ENA), Pendle (PENDLE), and Ether.fi (ETHFI), which he believes can outperform as fiat liquidity improves.
According to the revelation disclosed today by market analyst Lookonchain, Hayes began his reallocation of his investment from ETH to such high-quality DeFi tokens on December 20 when he sold a total of 1,871 ETH (valued at $5,53 million) and purchased 1.22 million ENA tokens (worth $257,500), 137,117 PENDLE tokens (worth $259,000), and 132,730 ETHFI tokens (worth $93,000).
Why Smart Money Is Moving from Ethereum Bitcoin to Certain DeFi Tokens
Hayes’s move to slash his ETH holdings and pump capital into ENA, PENDLE, and ETHFI comes as Ethereum price experienced significant consolidation over the past few days, currently hovering at $2,936.66, down 0.2% and 3.3% over the past week and month, respectively. ETH’s continued correction remains as market volatility heightened and investor confidence weakened.
Hayes’ strategic decision to re-accumulating the above-mentioned DeFi tokens following Ether’s recent downturn reflects increased enthusiasm for such decentralized finance projects despite their market corrections. The transaction show wider whales’ demand on such innovative tokens as they are re-purchasing the outstanding DeFi assets at a discount. Prices of ENA, PENDLE, and ETHFI, currently stand at $0.1968, $1.70, and $0.6808, down 8.6%, 15.6%, and12.2% over the past week, respectively, showcasing their recent market dips.
Hayes’ acquisitions of the above tokens signify institutional interest as whales continue to build positions on select altcoins with growth potential as Ethereum displays persistent bearish sentiment.
ETH Price Prediction
Ether price dropped below the crucial $3,000 mark on December 15, 2025, last week and since then has continued to remain below the level. The largest altcoin is still under substantial pressure as bearish structure, heightened selling activities, and weak momentum weigh its price trajectory down.
Today, on Wednesday, December 24, ETH trades at $2,924.65 after it failed multiple times to hold above the psychologically significant $3,000 mark, a region that has traditionally acted as resistance. Continued selling activities (like the one noticed yestaday from institutional investor Wintermute and today from another, Arthur Hayes) show that if enough buyers don’t enter the market, then the digital asset risks to plunge towards the $2,500 level.