On-Chain ‘James Bond’ Nets $2 Million Shorting Silver as Jane Street Fuels Volatility Debate

An anonymous on-chain trader known as “0x007” pocketed $2.04 million by shorting silver near its recent top.

It comes just days before a brutal selloff rocked precious metals and rippled across global risk markets.

On-Chain ‘James Bond’ Nets $2 Million as Jane Street’s Silver Position Fuels Volatility Fears

Blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence highlightedthe name James Bond, indicating the precision of the trade.

“Trader 0x007 up $2 million shorting silver. The largest on-chain Silver short is up by $2 million. Trader 0x007 shorted the top of silver only 2 days ago, and is already up $2.04M. The name’s Bond. James Bond,” wrote Arkham.

The move came as silver faced one of its most turbulent stretches in years, with prices surging past $96 per ounce before collapsing sharply.

The price swing wiped significant value from precious metals markets and sent shockwaves through equities and crypto.

Jane Street’s Silver Stake Fuels Manipulation Debate

The selloff landed in an already charged environment. According to Bloomberg terminal data, Jane Street added 20.6 million shares of the iShares Silver Trust (SLV) in Q4 2025.

This record single-quarter increase made the quantitative trading firm the largest holder of the ETF, with a stake valued at roughly $1.6 billion. The position surpassed holdings from BlackRock and Morgan Stanley.

According to analyst Bull Theory, Jane Street’s stake represents approximately 3.6% of SLV shares outstanding.

The disclosure quickly sparked online debate over whether such a concentrated position in the world’s largest physically backed silver ETF could influence price dynamics, particularly when paired with the firm’s broader derivatives exposure.

Notably, Jane Street has faced regulatory scrutiny before, after Indian authorities fined the firm in 2025 over derivatives manipulation. This history has heightened sensitivity to its trading footprint in other markets, including Bitcoin.

The firm has dismissed allegations of manipulation as conspiracy theories, maintaining that it operates as a liquidity provider.

“Silver markets are heavily intermediated by banks, ETFs, futures markets, and algorithmic traders,” said Crux Investor analyst Ole Hansen of Saxo Bank, adding that when volatility spikes, liquidity evaporates, feeding further dislocation.