In the fast-paced crypto scene, where fortunes flip faster than a meme goes viral, one trader's bold move against a big name is turning heads. Dubbed the "Anti-CZ Whale," this anonymous player ramped up short positions on $ASTER right after Changpeng Zhao (CZ), the ex-CEO of Binance, revealed he'd snapped up some of the token himself. And boy, did that contrarian bet pay off.

For the uninitiated, shorting is essentially wagering that an asset's price will tank. You borrow the token, sell it high, then buy it back low to pocket the difference. On platforms like Hyperliquid—a decentralized exchange specializing in perpetual futures (perps), which let you trade with leverage without expiration dates—this whale is now swimming in over $21 million in unrealized profits from $ASTER shorts alone, spread across two wallets.

But the action doesn't stop there. This trader's also got shorts open on crowd-pleasing meme coins like $DOGE (the Shiba Inu-inspired OG that's Elon Musk's favorite) and $PEPE (the frog meme that's hopped its way to billions in market cap), plus heavyweights $ETH and $XRP. Every one of these positions is profitable, pushing the whale's total earnings on Hyperliquid close to a jaw-dropping $100 million.

Check out the dashboard snapshot shared by on-chain sleuths at Lookonchain. It shows a perp equity of $75.6 million, with a stellar 142% return on equity (ROE)—that's the profit relative to the capital invested. The chart's green line tells the story of steady gains since June 2025.

Diving deeper into the open positions:

• ASTER (3x leverage)​: Shorting 42.9 million tokens, unrealized profit: $16.05 million. Entry price around $1.20, current at $0.83.

• DOGE (5x)​: Short on 195.7 million tokens, profit: $6.84 million. DOGE's dipped from $0.2075 to $0.1634.

• ETH (20x)​: Shorting 6,000 ETH, profit: $2.54 million. From $3,944 to $3,518.

• XRP (Short)​: 6.01 billion tokens, profit: $841k. Price slide from $2.414 to $2.2856.

• KPEPE (5x)​: Likely King Pepe, a lesser-known Pepe variant meme token, shorting 141.1 billion, profit: $4.99 million. Down from $0.00079 to $0.00056.

This whale's strategy shines a light on the high-stakes game of meme coin trading. Tokens like DOGE and PEPE thrive on hype, social media buzz, and community vibes, but they're notoriously volatile—perfect for short sellers when sentiment sours. ASTER, tied to the Aster DEX for spot and perp trading, isn't purely a meme but got a boost (and then a bust) from CZ's endorsement on Binance.

CZ's buy tweet from November 2, 2025, sparked initial pumps, but markets being markets, the price crumbled, rewarding the shorts. It's a reminder: even endorsements from crypto titans like CZ don't guarantee upsides. Whales monitoring on-chain data via tools like Lookonchain can spot these setups early.

If you're dabbling in meme tokens or perps, remember the risks—leverage amplifies losses too. Always do your own research (DYOR), and maybe keep an eye on these anti-establishment plays for inspiration. Who knows, the next big short could be brewing right now in the meme coin trenches.