Jane Street allegedly profited $134M shorting Luna/UST

Terraform Labs’ bankruptcy estate has accused Jane Street of using a private Telegram channel to obtain nonpublic information before the May 2022 collapse of TerraUSD and Luna, according to newly unsealed court filings reported on May 20 and May 21. The estate says the trading firm sold about $192 million of UST before the stablecoin lost its peg and later made about $134 million from short positions tied to the collapse. Jane Street has denied the allegations and has asked a judge to dismiss the case, calling the claims baseless and opportunistic. The allegations surfaced first through court reporting and crypto outlets, not through the X posts that amplified them. ### Where did the $134 million claim actually come from? The $134 million figure comes from allegations by the Terraform estate in federal court, not from an independently verified on-chain report. CoinDesk reported that newly unsealed filings described a private chat called “Bryce’s Secret” that the estate says gave Jane Street an informational edge before UST’s collapse. Decrypt and other outlets separately reported the same core allegation from the filings. (coindesk.com) The filings, as described by multiple reports, say Jane Street first unwound UST exposure and then profited from short positions as Terra unraveled. That means the viral claim is now tied to a live court dispute rather than only to anonymous social-media analysis. The profit number remains an allegation by the plaintiff unless proved in court or confirmed by trading records. (coindesk.com) ### What trades does the lawsuit say happened before the depeg? May 7, 2022 is the key date in Jane Street’s dismissal motion and in reporting on the case. CoinDesk reported in April that the complaint says Terraform withdrew 150 million UST from Curve and that a wallet linked to Jane Street pulled 85 million UST minutes later. Several follow-up reports this week said the estate now alleges Jane Street sold about $192 million in UST before the collapse. (coindesk.com) An 85 million UST transaction “within nine minutes” of Terraform’s liquidity withdrawal is one of the most specific details repeated across coverage of the amended filings. The estate says that sequence shows Jane Street acted with an informational advantage; Jane Street says the trades reflected public market deterioration, according to reporting on its motion to dismiss. (coindesk.com) ### What is the Telegram allegation, and who is named? “Bryce’s Secret” is the name several outlets said appears in the unsealed filings for a private Telegram chat. The estate alleges the channel connected Jane Street to Bryce Pratt, described in reports as a former Terraform intern and current Jane Street employee, and gave the firm access to confidential information before the crash. (edgen.tech) Bryce Pratt’s role matters because the estate’s theory depends on a backchannel carrying material nonpublic information. The reporting available on May 21 does not show public release of the full evidentiary record behind that claim, and mainstream outlets have framed the Telegram material as an allegation contained in court papers. (coindesk.com) ### What has Jane Street said in response? Jane Street has denied wrongdoing in prior and current reporting on the case. CoinDesk reported in February that Jane Street called the suit a “desperate” and “baseless” attempt to extract money, and later reporting said the firm argued it simply sold a deteriorating investment as public warning signs mounted. Bloomberg reported on April 23 that Jane Street sought dismissal of the lawsuit in court. (coindesk.com) Other reports this week quoted Jane Street as saying it would defend itself vigorously and that investor losses stemmed from fraud by Terraform management rather than insider trading by Jane Street. Those statements, too, were reported as part of the litigation fight, not as findings by a court. ### So what is verified, and what is still unproven? As of May 21, 2026, the verified part is that a lawsuit exists, the filings were unsealed, and the estate is making the Telegram-channel and $134 million profit allegations in court. (coindesk.com) The unproven part is whether Jane Street in fact received nonpublic information, whether the wallet identifications are correct, and whether the alleged profits can be substantiated by internal records or on-chain evidence that survives legal scrutiny. (coinness.com) Manhattan federal court is now the place to watch. Jane Street’s motion to dismiss was already on file in April, and any next step — an amended complaint, opposition brief, ruling, or further unsealed exhibits — is likely to provide the clearest public test of the $134 million allegation and the “Bryce’s Secret” Telegram claim. (bloomberg.com) (coindesk.com)