Arthur Hayes Adds 9.05 Million ENA Ahead of Ethena Token Unlock

Hayes Increases ENA Holdings Before Key Supply Event#

BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes has accumulated 9.05 million Ethena (ENA) tokens worth approximately $773,000 over the past three days, according to on-chain data from Lookonchain. The purchases come just ahead of Ethena's scheduled token unlock on August 5, a development that could test investor demand.

Hayes' latest accumulation included the purchase of 6 million ENA valued at $525,000 on Monday, following an earlier acquisition of 3.05 million ENA worth $248,000 two days earlier. To help fund the move, he also sold 6.16 million Synapse (SYN) tokens for roughly $658,000, continuing his recent portfolio reshuffle.

$15.36 Million Unlock Puts ENA in Focus#

The timing of Hayes' purchases has attracted attention because Ethena is set to release 171.88 million ENA tokens, worth approximately $15.36 million, on August 5. The unlock represents about 1.97% of the token's circulating released supply, increasing the amount of ENA available in the market.

Historically, token unlocks can create short-term selling pressure as newly unlocked tokens become available for trading. However, BeInCrypto's analysis found that ENA's price moved less than 1% on the median unlock day across its previous 11 monthly unlocks, although the token declined during the following week in seven of those 11 events.

Hayes' Trading Timing Under Scrutiny#

While Hayes' latest purchases signal confidence in Ethena, his track record with ENA has raised questions. Earlier this year, he bought 15.8 million ENA at an average price of $0.23 before later selling 3.6 million tokens at around $0.14, locking in a loss. More recently, he also sold Ethereum before buying it back at a higher price, reinforcing a pattern of poorly timed trades highlighted by blockchain analytics platform Lookonchain.

With the August 5 unlock approaching, investors will be watching closely to see whether fresh demand can absorb the additional supply or whether ENA follows its historical pattern of post-unlock weakness.

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