BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes announced on Friday that his family office, Maelstrom, had sold its entire stake in Worldcoin (WLD), just a day after publicly stating the firm would hold the token. Hayes linked the decision to a sharp decline in pre-listing prices for SpaceX shares, which he treated as a proxy for the AI trade that Worldcoin was meant to represent. Worldcoin fell about 10% in the past 24 hours, part of a broader crypto market downturn, with a notable drop after Hayes' announcement. SpaceX, trading under the ticker SPCX, does not officially list on the Nasdaq until June 12, so the pre-listing quotes from private markets have dropped more than 50% in recent days. Hayes, a frequent market-moving voice in crypto, had previously said Maelstrom would keep Worldcoin while waiting for Elon Musk to lift the price, despite having sold its Zcash holdings due to a privacy flaw. Worldcoin had risen 70% in the past month before the recent decline.

Key facts

• Arthur Hayes sold Maelstrom's entire Worldcoin stake on Friday.
• He cited a 50%+ drop in SpaceX pre-listing prices on Hyperliquid.
• Worldcoin fell about 10% in the past 24 hours.
• SpaceX shares do not begin trading on Nasdaq until June 12.
• Hayes had said a day earlier that Maelstrom would keep holding Worldcoin.