Written by: Route 2 FI
Translated by: Saoirse, Foresight News
Editor's note: When the crypto market experienced the "10.11" cliff-like crash, with altcoins plummeting an average of 62%, the author reviews survival logic from a first-hand perspective: from the unexpected survival of delta-neutral strategies to deep reflections on leverage usage and market speculation. The article reveals both the stress test faced by DeFi and perpetual contract platforms, and raises the core proposition that "passion drives industry survivors." The following is the full translation:
I've been reflecting a lot on my life choices lately — for the past four years, I've been almost entirely devoted to the crypto space, and "entirely" is no exaggeration: I have almost no other hobbies, and most of my waking hours are directly or indirectly centered around crypto: researching trades, testing new protocols, communicating with others, posting content on X, reading others' opinions, browsing industry newsletters, and reading podcast transcripts (I prefer text because I can read five times faster than watching videos or listening to audio).
I truly love the process of working hard, even to the point of obsession. This doesn't mean crypto is my only interest, but it is my main focus at the moment. Maybe one day in the future I'll get bored, spend weeks or months thinking about my direction in life, and eventually find a new goal. But looking back, my obsession with numbers and speculation is obvious.
The "10.11" crash was shocking, but I was almost unscathed. Over the weekend, I used a delta-neutral strategy on the Lighter platform, and my short positions were not automatically liquidated as they would have been on platforms like Hyperliquid; on the long side, I only held spot assets. At the time, I had no perpetual contract positions open on Bybit, and the day before the crash, I closed a sizable DOGE/BTC pair trade — my original intention was just to have a peaceful weekend, but looking back, if I hadn't closed that trade, I would have suffered heavy losses. So surviving this time was indeed partly due to luck.
I usually use low leverage of 2-3x, mainly to reduce the margin required on centralized exchanges (CEX) or decentralized exchanges (DEX). But this crash still shocked me: altcoins fell an average of 62%, with some coins dropping 85%-99% — meaning all leveraged long traders were "liquidated." In recent years, many aggressive traders (known as "degens" in the space) have flocked to crypto trading, first battling in the Solana ecosystem and then moving into perpetual contracts. Now, leveraged trading has become the industry norm, and I myself use leverage daily. Some might blame these traders for lacking risk management, but in my view, 2-3x leverage is actually quite conservative. And honestly, I don't think people will give up leverage because of this crash — within 1-2 weeks, those aggressive traders will be back in the market as if nothing happened.
Just imagine, facing an average 63% drop in altcoins (and that's just the average, most coins fell much more), how would you hedge your risk? It's just crazy.
So, after this crash, who will stay and continue to "fight" in this cycle?
The answer is those who are "stubborn yet cautious": they mainly hold spot assets and will observe new coins or projects for a long time before getting involved. They don't blindly follow the crowd and go all-in, so they usually can't get ultra-high returns, but at the same time, their portfolios can achieve stable compound growth year after year.
The most severely impacted were perpetual contract traders; ironically, many "altcoin diehards" (such as traders in the Solana ecosystem) fared relatively well — because most of them trade without leverage. Of course, some did get involved in the perpetual contract market, and if so, they most likely suffered heavy losses. But most still stick to "spot positions," and even if they lose money, it's not a total wipeout.
For decentralized perpetual contract exchanges (Perp DEX), the impact of this crash is worth noting: short positions on Hyperliquid were automatically liquidated, allowing its platform token HLP to profit; while short positions on Lighter were not liquidated, causing its platform token LLP to incur losses. No one can predict the future of decentralized perpetual contract exchanges, but this "10.11" "stress test" has left the industry with many lessons and areas for improvement. For example, does the HYPE token buyback model need adjustment? Is a 100% buyback sustainable?
Will I stop using leverage? The answer is no. I know I have to be responsible for all my trades and decisions, and risk is always present — if there were no risk, there would be no return.
As for DeFi, I expect a wave of position liquidations in the future. Although DeFi performed well in this "10.11" crash, market panic has spread, and many people may prefer to keep assets in their own wallets rather than entrust them to third parties. Fortunately, USDe remained stable during this event. In my view, Ethena is the "pillar" of the DeFi sector — it supports the entire DeFi ecosystem, and if Ethena has problems, it will trigger a chain reaction (for example, 70% of Pendle's total value locked (TVL) depends on Ethena).
Looking ahead, I've been thinking about which altcoins are worth buying. Right now, I'm more inclined toward MNT and those "veteran tokens" that have been around for a long time. In addition, I think the future "altcoin speculation frenzy" will cool down, so PUMP and Fartcoin won't be my main investment targets. Currently, I mainly hold stablecoins and plan to use a "pure news/narrative-driven" trading model — this approach may not bring the highest returns, but at least it can protect my account funds well in the short term.
Finally, I want to say:
Most people can't achieve their dream wealth goals because they don't possess the qualities of successful people.
Your competitors are those who are "born for this field": they don't care about working hours and don't back down in the face of adversity. They don't slack off in good times, nor do they give up in bad times — this has long become their way of life.
Wealth may be their superficial goal, but what truly drives them is "the pursuit," "the joy of growth," "the honing of skills," and the silent improvement of their professional abilities when no one is watching.
They are not obsessed with "the finish line," but deeply love "the scenery along the way."
That's why, when others choose to get tired or quit, they can keep "winning" — not because they "must win," but because they can't imagine leaving the "game" they love.
