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Hyperliquid Absorbs $4.9 Million Loss After Orchestrated POPCAT Whipsaw Triggers Mass Liquidations

A coordinated sequence using $3 million split across 19 wallets manufactured demand and then yanked a buy wall, revealing how thin depth and automated backstops leave DeFi perpetuals vulnerable.

Overview

  • On-chain analysts say roughly $3 million withdrawn from OKX was dispersed across about 19 wallets to build $20–$30 million of leveraged POPCAT longs and place a large buy wall near $0.21.
  • When the buy wall was removed, POPCAT’s price reversed sharply, producing about $63 million in long-side liquidations within hours, including a single position of roughly $21 million.
  • Hyperliquid’s community liquidity vault (HLP) absorbed around $4.9 million in bad debt after collateral was exhausted, and remaining exposures were reportedly closed manually.
  • Hyperliquid temporarily paused Arbitrum-based deposits and withdrawals via an emergency lock during the turbulence and later resumed bridge activity, according to project channels and observers.
  • Investigators have mapped the wallets and sequence but the trader remains unidentified, and Hyperliquid has not announced changes to its vault or risk controls following earlier disruptions such as JELLYJELLY.