Bankrupt trader turns around 40 times in 30 days, turning $20,000 into $600,000, but the liquidation risk of this high-stakes gamble is looming.

From a $20,000 principal to a $620,000 account value, and reaching a high of $800,000 this morning, trader James Wynn kicked off 2026 with a “bankruptcy turnaround” story. This well-known whale, who previously lost over $100 million on Hyperliquid, has now achieved 30-40x returns within just a few days through aggressive leverage strategies. However, behind this impressive performance lies a total position size of up to $13.95 million and the risk of liquidation that could occur at any moment.

Trading Details of Going from Bankruptcy to Wealth

According to on-chain monitoring data, Wynn’s turnaround mainly unfolds along two fronts:

BTC Long: 40x leverage

His main position is a 40x leveraged BTC long, with a holding size of $11.5 million, currently showing an unrealized profit of about $150,000 (52%). Entry price was $91,300, with a liquidation price of $89,600. This means a roughly 1.9% drop in BTC price would trigger liquidation. Data indicates this position is extremely sensitive to risk.

PEPE Long: Rolling over to catch hot spots

A 10x leveraged PEPE long with a position of $2.45 million, unrealized profit of $450,000 (182%). This profit is even more substantial, with an average entry of $0.0055 and a liquidation price of $0.0057. PEPE’s strong performance has been the main driver of his gains this month. According to recent reports, PEPE has risen 63.23% over the past 7 days and 54.15% over 30 days, with a current market cap of about $283 million.

Sub-address coordination: Diversify risk or add leverage

Wynn’s other public address (0x8da) currently holds BTC, HYPE, XRP longs, with a total position of $7.02 million and an unrealized profit of $390,000 (154%). This indicates he is not relying on a single point of bet but is deploying across multiple addresses.

Market Context Behind the Strategy

This turnaround didn’t happen out of nowhere but was aligned with several key market nodes:

PEPE’s “narrative” boost

On January 1, Wynn publicly predicted PEPE’s market cap would surpass $69 billion by 2026 (current $2.8 billion), promising to delete his social accounts if not achieved. This provocative forecast attracted a lot of follow-up buying, creating a strong bullish sentiment. On-chain data shows PEPE’s price accelerated upward after this prediction.

Technical resonance in BTC

Bitcoin broke through its daily trendline this week, and the smaller timeframes also broke out of the range, forming bullish technical signals. This provides fundamental support for Wynn’s 40x BTC long.

Risks Are Right in Front

The other side of this performance is enormous risk exposure:

It’s important to note that these gains are unrealized. Any sharp volatility in either direction could trigger chain reactions of liquidation. Especially with the 40x leverage on BTC longs, where the liquidation price is only 1.9% away, any normal market correction could lead to a margin call.

Looking at the Past to Understand the Present

In mid-2025, Wynn lost $100 million (including $87 million profit and $21.77 million principal). Whether this turnaround can be sustained remains uncertain. High leverage trading essentially amplifies both gains and risks. Going from $20,000 to $620,000 can be reversed with a small market move, returning to the starting point.

Summary

Wynn’s 30-day turnaround story exemplifies the high-risk, high-reward nature of crypto markets. Through precise market judgment and aggressive leverage, he achieved significant gains in a short period. But with a total position of $13.95 million, a very tight liquidation margin, and unrealized profits, this gamble is still ongoing. Historically, traders who go bankrupt and then bounce back often end up bankrupt again. This case serves as a reminder to all traders: high leverage is a double-edged sword—while it can amplify profits, it also carries the risk of triggering liquidation at any moment.