Allegations Against BitMEX Co-founder Arthur Hayes Over Crypto Sales

By Patricia Miller

Jun 08, 2026

2 min read

BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes faces allegations of promoting cryptos before selling his holdings. This raises important questions for investors.

#What Allegations Are Being Made Against Arthur Hayes?

Allegations have arisen concerning Arthur Hayes, co-founder of BitMEX, suggesting that he has a pattern of publicly promoting various cryptocurrency assets before discretely selling off his holdings. This situation, raised by on-chain analyst ZachXBT, highlights concerns with four specific cryptocurrencies: Hyperliquid, NEAR Protocol, Zcash, and Worldcoin. The claims assert that Hayes presented optimistic views on these currencies right before he liquidated his investments in them.

On a recent Saturday, Hayes announced that he had divested from his Worldcoin position, citing that its price movement was unfavorable. This declaration came on the heels of his earlier bullish statements regarding Worldcoin, made shortly after he had already sold off his stakes in HYPE, NEAR, and ZEC, a trio he previously referred to as his “holy trinity” of investments.

During this time, Hayes and his family office, Maelstrom, had been advocating for Worldcoin as an attractive AI investment opportunity. They posited that Worldcoin could provide a publicly traded investment channel for those wanting exposure to the burgeoning ecosystem associated with Sam Altman, OpenAI's CEO, as the market buzzed about potential IPOs in the AI sector.

#How Did Hayes Respond to the Accusations?

In light of the allegations made by ZachXBT, Hayes responded by clarifying that his decisions to sell were made based on market conditions and aimed at consenting buyers at current prices. He indicated that had the market continued to rise, his earlier selling could have been perceived as a poor decision. Hayes concluded that his recent success in timing the market was simply a matter of meeting his trading objectives.

Important Notice And Disclaimer

This article does not provide any financial advice and is not a recommendation to deal in any securities or product. Investments may fall in value and an investor may lose some or all of their investment. Past performance is not an indicator of future performance.