Garrett Jin, the former CEO of the now-defunct cryptocurrency exchange BitForex, has publicly denied accusations of market manipulation tied to Bitcoin trading.
In a post on X on Monday, Jin stated he had “no connection with the Trump family,” refuting claims of insider trading.
These allegations were made by a crypto researcher known as Eye, who claimed Jin controlled a wallet address that was used to short Bitcoin just before a major market-moving announcement.
The wallet in question reportedly opened a short position less than an hour before U.S. President Donald Trump announced “a tariff of 100% on China” last Friday.
The news coincided with a notable dip in Bitcoin prices, briefly dropping the cryptocurrency to around $102,000.
Eye further suggested over the weekend that Jin was a Hyperliquid whale holding more than 100,000 BTC.
Jin responded, asserting that the wallet was owned by a client.
He also criticized former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao for retweeting Eye’s claims, saying it shared “personal and private information” with Zhao’s 10 million-plus followers.
Regardless of Jin’s direct involvement, the wallet was linked to a $735 million short on Bitcoin.
Following Trump’s announcement, Bitcoin fell sharply, although the former president attempted to walk back his statement on Sunday, posting, “don’t worry about China.”
Skepticism over Eye’s claims persists in the crypto community.
Analyst ZachXBT suggested it was more likely that “a friend of Jin” executed the trades.
Meanwhile, crypto analyst Quinten Francois indicated that the evidence connecting Jin to the wallet appeared “too convenient” to be definitive.
Insider trading concerns are not new in the cryptocurrency sector.
Earlier this year, an anonymous trader made over $482,000 on the Bubb (BUBB) memecoin just before its price halved in March.
Similarly, in January, a wallet purchased approximately $6 million of Trump’s memecoin, Official Trump (TRUMP), within a minute of its launch, drawing attention from observers.
These incidents highlight ongoing concerns about the potential for well-timed trades and private information to influence cryptocurrency markets.