Rumors are circulating that liberal billionaire George Soros may have reaped millions off shorting the Australian dollar this week.
Large bets were placed against the Australian dollar earlier this week by investors in Hong Kong and Singapore, who may be linked to Soros' investment firm, though CNBC has been unable to confirm it. However, even rumors Soros may be shorting the currency may affect the market given his history, according to CNBC:
The Aussie fell 0.6 percent against the U.S. dollar late Monday on a report in the Sydney Morning Herald that bets against the currency totaling $1 billion were placed via Hong Kong and Singapore, believed to be by Soros Fund Management. CNBC has not been able to independently confirm the rumor.
The selling momentum escalated Tuesday after the Reserve Bank of Australia cut interest rates by 0.25 percent to a record low of 2.75 percent. The currency dropped over half a cent to as deep as $1.0178, its lowest since early March.
While many analysts shrugged off the size of the rumored trade, they said talk that such a well-known and respected investor such as Soros was dabbling in currency markets will have weight.
Although now better known in the United States for his financing of liberal political causes, Soros famously bet against the British pound in 1992 for a $1.8 billion profit.
If the traders were linked to Soros, the financier could have taken in a profit of $19 to $60 million dollars, according to a Sydney Morning Herald report Wednesday.