How much did traders bet on falling oil prices before the Hormuz announcement?

Traders placed a $760 million bet against oil prices about 20 minutes before the announcement that the Strait of Hormuz was open.

What caused crude oil prices to drop after the Hormuz announcement?

Crude oil prices fell as much as 11% after Iran's foreign minister declared the Strait of Hormuz open for commercial vessels during a ceasefire.

Who is investigating the oil futures trades placed before major policy announcements?

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission is investigating oil futures trades made before significant announcements about the Middle East conflict.

Editorial & Advertiser disclosure

Global Banking & Finance Review® is an online platform offering news, analysis, and opinion on the latest trends, developments, and innovations in the banking and finance industry worldwide. The platform covers a diverse range of topics, including banking, insurance, investment, wealth management, fintech, and regulatory issues. The website publishes news, press releases, opinion and advertorials on various financial organizations, products and services which are commissioned from various Companies, Organizations, PR agencies, Bloggers etc. These commissioned articles are commercial in nature. This is not to be considered as financial advice and should be considered only for information purposes. It does not reflect the views or opinion of our website and is not to be considered an endorsement or a recommendation. We cannot guarantee the accuracy or applicability of any information provided with respect to your individual or personal circumstances. Please seek Professional advice from a qualified professional before making any financial decisions. We link to various third-party websites, affiliate sales networks, and to our advertising partners websites. When you view or click on certain links available on our articles, our partners may compensate us for displaying the content to you or make a purchase or fill a form. This will not incur any additional charges to you. To make things simpler for you to identity or distinguish advertised or sponsored articles or links, you may consider all articles or links hosted on our site as a commercial article placement. We will not be responsible for any loss you may suffer as a result of any omission or inaccuracy on the website.

Finance

Traders Place $760 Million Bet on Falling Oil Ahead of Hormuz Announcement

Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®

Posted on April 17, 2026

2 min read

Last updated: April 17, 2026

Add as preferred source on Google

Traders place $760 million bet on falling oil ahead of Hormuz announcement - Finance news and analysis from Global Banking & Finance Review

Major Oil Trades and Market Reactions Amid Middle East Tensions

By Amanda Cooper

Timing and Scale of the $760 Million Bet

LONDON, April 17 (Reuters) - Investors placed a bet worth about $760 million on a falling oil price around 20 minutes before Iran's foreign minister announced on Friday that the Strait of Hormuz was open, another sizeable wager on the world's most traded commodity ahead of major announcements in the course of the Middle East war.

Concerns Over Well-Timed Trades

Large, well‑timed trades in recent months have drawn concern from U.S. lawmakers and legal experts that decisions around war and diplomacy can give some traders an edge in volatile and opaque derivatives markets.

Key Details of the April 17 Trades

Between 1224 GMT and 1225 GMT investors sold a combined 7,990 lots of Brent crude futures, according to LSEG data.

Based on the price at the time, these trades were worth about $760 million.

At 1245 GMT, Iran's foreign minister posted on X that passage for all commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz was declared completely open for the remaining period of ceasefire, in line with the ceasefire in Lebanon.

The announcement pushed crude down as much as 11% on the day in the minutes that followed.

Previous Large Bets Before Key Announcements

Reuters reported that on April 7 that bets worth around $950 million took place just hours ahead of the U.S. and Iran announcing a two-week ceasefire. On March 23, investors sold $500 million in oil futures 15 minutes before U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement that he would delay attacks on Iran's energy infrastructure, triggering a 15% drop in the crude price.

Regulatory Response and Investigations

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission is investigating a series of oil futures trades, including those on March 23 and April 7, that were placed shortly before major policy shifts by Trump related to the war in Iran, a person familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

(Reporting by Amanda Cooper; Editing by Elisa Martinuzzi and Kirsten Donovan)

Traders Place $760 Million Bet on Falling Oil Ahead of Hormuz Announcement

Quick Summary

Traders Place $760 Million Bet on Falling Oil Before Hormuz Decision