Two main Ethereum whales offloaded a mixed $371 million in ETH over the span of 48 hours to repay excellent loans on Aave, the biggest decentralized lending protocol.
The strikes got here as Aave processed over $140 million in automated liquidations throughout a number of networks, underscoring rising warning amongst even essentially the most well-capitalized market members.
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BitcoinOG Sells $292M in ETH, Repays $92.5M
The whale often called BitcoinOG (1011short), one of the vital intently watched on-chain entities, deposited 121,185 ETH value $292 million into Binance over two days. From these proceeds, the entity withdrew $92.5 million in stablecoins and used them to pay down debt on Aave.
Regardless of the big sale, BitcoinOG stays one of many greatest particular person holders in crypto. The pockets nonetheless holds 30,661 BTC, valued at roughly $2.36 billion, and 783,514 ETH, value roughly $1.78 billion, on-chain, in line with Arkham Intelligence information cited by Lookonchain.
Notably, solely a couple of third of the ETH deposited into Binance went towards mortgage reimbursement. The remaining $200 million might have been used for different functions, equivalent to repositioning, hedging, or constructing money reserves — although no additional on-chain particulars have been confirmed.
BitcoinOG first gained prominence after benefiting from a well-timed BTC brief forward of the October 2025 crash. In late January, the entity transferred 148,000 ETH to Aave and borrowed $240 million in stablecoins, establishing a leveraged lengthy place. The present deleveraging seems to be a strategic unwinding of that publicity quite than a pressured liquidation.
Development Analysis Unloads $79M in ETH, Repays Almost All
Hong Kong-based funding agency Development Analysis executed an analogous however tighter operation. Over a 20-hour interval, the agency deposited 33,589 ETH, value $79 million, into Binance, then withdrew 77.5 million USDT to settle a debt on Aave. Almost the complete quantity offered went on to mortgage reimbursement.
Development Analysis nonetheless holds 618,045 ETH valued at roughly $1.4 billion. The agency, an affiliate of LD Capital, had been one of the vital aggressive ETH accumulators in current months, borrowing as much as $958 million in stablecoins from Aave to fund purchases at a median entry worth of roughly $3,265 per ETH.
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Founder Jack Yi had publicly said that the agency was positioning for a structurally bullish first quarter of 2026. The choice to start repaying debt alerts a extra cautious stance, even when the agency retains an enormous ETH place.
Two Whales, Two Approaches
Each whales transformed ETH to stablecoins by way of Binance earlier than repaying Aave loans, however the particulars reveal completely different methods.
| BitcoinOG (1011short) | Development Analysis | |
|---|---|---|
| ETH Bought | 121,185 ETH ($292M) | 33,589 ETH ($79M) |
| Debt Repaid | $92.5M stablecoins | 77.5M USDT |
| Compensation Ratio | ~31.7% of sale proceeds | ~98.1% of sale proceeds |
| Timeframe | 2 days | 20 hours |
| Remaining ETH | 783,514 ETH ($1.78B) | 618,045 ETH ($1.4B) |
| Different Holdings | 30,661 BTC ($2.36B) | — |
BitcoinOG’s decrease reimbursement ratio suggests the entity is rebalancing throughout a number of fronts, not simply decreasing Aave publicity. Development Analysis, in contrast, directed practically each greenback from its sale towards clearing debt — a extra centered deleveraging play.
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Neither entity was pressured into these gross sales. Each acted preemptively to scale back threat, a sample in keeping with refined portfolio administration throughout risky circumstances.
Aave Weathers $140M Liquidation Storm
These voluntary strikes happened in opposition to a turbulent backdrop. On Jan. 31, Aave’s automated techniques liquidated over $140 million in collateral throughout a number of blockchain networks.
Aave founder Stani Kulechov described the occasion as a big stress take a look at for the protocol’s $50 billion-plus on-chain lending markets. “Aave Protocol liquidated over $140M collateral throughout a number of networks with none points, absolutely automated,” Kulechov wrote on X.
It is very important distinguish between the 2 sorts of exercise. The $140 million in liquidations on Jan. 31 was automated — triggered when debtors’ collateral values fell under required thresholds. The $371 million whale deleveraging on Feb. 1–2 was voluntary — proactive choices to promote property and repay loans earlier than reaching liquidation threat.
Each occasions occurred inside the similar 48-hour window however mirror completely different mechanisms. The automated liquidations show Aave’s protocol resilience. The whale repayments reveal how giant holders are actively managing threat forward of potential additional draw back.
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Aave’s ETH Deposits Hit Report Excessive
Regardless of the market turbulence, Aave’s fundamentals stay sturdy. ETH deposits on the protocol reached a brand new all-time excessive in early January, surpassing 3 million ETH and approaching 4 million ETH, in line with Token Terminal information.
Aave presently leads all DeFi protocols in whole worth locked and was ranked first in DeFiLlama’s high 10 protocol record firstly of 2026. The protocol’s skill to course of large-scale liquidations with out insolvency threat or guide intervention continues to set it other than rivals.
What It Means
The simultaneous deleveraging by two of the biggest ETH holders on-chain sends a transparent sign: even essentially the most bullish whales are trimming threat publicity as February 2026 unfolds. Each BitcoinOG and Development Analysis retain huge positions — over $3 billion in mixed ETH holdings — however are selecting to scale back leverage quite than journey out volatility.
For the broader market, the important thing query is whether or not this represents prudent housekeeping or the early phases of a broader risk-off shift amongst institutional-scale DeFi members.
