Arthur Hayes, co-founder of BitMEX, gained market attention after completing a high-conviction rotation out of Ethereum and into a select group of decentralized finance tokens. On-chain data, later reinforced by his public remarks, shows a deliberate concentration of capital in specific DeFi protocols that he believes are positioned to outperform as liquidity conditions evolve.
Ethereum was sold, not abandoned
Blockchain data shows that over a two-week period, Hayes reduced his exposure to Ethereum by selling a total of 1,871 ETH, valued at approximately $5.53 million at the time of execution. This was not an isolated transaction, as the ETH sales were closely followed by a series of DeFi purchases, indicating that Ethereum was being used as a funding source rather than an asset that it was abandoning for reasons of conviction.
This model fits Hayes’ broader view of Ethereum’s role in the market. ETH increasingly serves as fundamental infrastructure and productive collateral, while much of the additional yield potential has migrated to protocols closer to yield generation and cash flow activity. Hayes had already flagged this thinking earlier, after reducing ETH exposure in August, making the recent sell-off part of a continued reallocation rather than a sudden reversal.
Hayes later publicly reinforced this rationale, stating that his portfolio was moving away from ETH and toward “high-quality DeFi names,” based on the hope that these assets could outperform in an environment of improving fiat liquidity. The speed and coordination of the transactions suggest a clearly macroeconomic movement rather than tactical speculation.
The thesis behind the purchases of Pendle, Lido DAO, Ethena and Ether.fi
Following the ETH sales, Hayes redeployed his capital across four DeFi protocols, each targeting a different segment of the Ethereum financial stack. Initial purchases included 961,113 PENDLE worth approximately $1.75 million, reflecting exposure to yield tokenization and on-chain fixed income markets. It also acquired 2.3 million LDO worth approximately $1.29 million, positioning itself in a liquid staking infrastructure that continues to play a central role in Ethereum’s staking economy.
Additional allocations were made to Ethena and Ether.fi, with Hayes purchasing 6.05 million ENA for approximately $1.24 million and 491,401 ETHFI worth approximately $343,000. Minutes later, on-chain trackers reported follow-on purchases, showing Hayes doubling on two positions. It added another 4.86 million ENA worth nearly $986,000 and 697,851 ETHFI worth around $485,000, pushing the total DeFi deployment well beyond the initial allocation.
The structure of these purchases is important. Pendle targets yield markets, Lido anchors liquidity, Ethena focuses on synthetic dollar mechanics, and Ether.fi captures emerging yield. Together, they provide strong exposure to yield, capital efficiency, and adoption at the infrastructure level rather than narrative transactions.
Hayes’ actions underscore a consistent message: Ethereum remains the base layer, but he sees the strongest risk-adjusted opportunities in DeFi protocols that actively convert ETH into productive, revenue-linked assets.
