Amid the crypto market slump, rumors emerged that Tron founder Justin Sun’s positions had been liquidated. Sun denied the rumors and criticized the community’s FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt), pledging to create a fund to help the industry.
Justin Sun Denies Liquidation Rumors
Over the weekend, the crypto market saw a significant retrace that dragged its market capitalization below the $2 trillion mark. As a result, hundreds of thousands of positions have been liquidated, with the amount skyrocketing to over $1 billion.
Related Reading: Here’s Why Bitcoin And Ethereum Price Crashed
As reports of the massive liquidations surged, the community speculated about the entities that faced some of the $372 million Ethereum (ETH) liquidations. One report caught investor’s attention after claiming that “Justin Sun finally got liquidated.”
The rumors intensified when Arthur Hayes, Co-founder of crypto exchange BitMEX, shared on X that “somebody big got smoked, and is dumping all crypto.” According to Hayes, the information came from his “TradFi birdies” but didn’t share any names.
Community speculates about Sun's liquidations. Source: Arthur Hayes on X
Some guessed that Hayes referred to Tron’s founder and its team, which seemingly intensified the FUD. However, Sun clarified that the rumors were false and slammed leverage trading strategies. He stated that they “rarely engage” in these strategies as they don’t believe they benefit the industry.
Additionally, he emphasized that he prefers activities that “provide greater support to the industry and entrepreneurs, such as staking, running nodes, working on projects, and helping project teams provide liquidity.”
After clearing up the liquidation rumors, blockchain analysis firm Spot on Chain revealed that Sun’s portfolio took a hit after the crypto market downturn. Per the report, Sun’s ETH holdings saw its massive value drop after the second-largest cryptocurrency dropped 20%.
Sun reportedly has purchased 377,590 ETH since February of 2024 at an average price of $3,051. His portfolio took a $280 million hit after ETH’s trading price fell below his average buying price over the weekend.
$1 Billion Crypto Fund To “Combat FUD”
Following his clarification, Tron’s founder also took X to offer assurance to the crypto community. He believes investors should not worry about the market crash as the industry has “grown significantly over the past year.”
Sun also suggested that the market fluctuation “isn’t due to negative news” and refused to participate in the ongoing FUD. To him, the community should reject the FUD and “keep building” the sector. As a result, he announced the creation of a fund to fight the negative sentiment and invest in the crypto industry.
Sun annouces fund to fight FUD. Source: Justin Sun on X
Per the post, the $1 billion fund will be used “to combat FUD, invest more, and provide liquidity,” but further details about the project are yet to be revealed.
The crypto community criticized Sun’s proposal, claiming that Tron’s founder has made “fake announcements” before. Meanwhile, others questioned the funds’ purpose, wondering if it would be used to “pay Twitter bots” or “hiring counter FUD units.”
Investors claimed Sun was “creating FUD to combat FUD,” while others asked him to “buy back the $1 billion in assets,” as he offered during the German Government Bitcoin selloff. Nonetheless, some community members praised his efforts to reassure the community during the market turmoil.
Ethereum is trading at $2,242 in the three-day chart. Source: ETHUSDT on TradingView
