Dissect the on-chain and off-chain dual engines behind Hyperliquid token’s explosive growth

Author: Finn Grant, Cryptocurrency Writer; Translation: @GoldenFinanceXZ

HYPE — The native token of the Hyperliquid network, just hit a new all-time high of $61.84 (at the time of publication). As this milestone occurs, most other major cryptocurrencies are struggling.

In this article, we examine what is driving the current surge in HYPE. In fact, there are several on-chain and off-chain factors worth paying attention to that can help us understand this round of price appreciation.

First, is this growth driven by institutional adoption, or by the continuous expansion of network utility? Or both?

Summary of this article:

A large amount of on-chain evidence indicates that recent ETF fund inflows and acquisitions have fueled strong institutional interest in HYPE.

Pre-IPO trading features have provided a safe haven during the crypto market downturn and countered traditional finance (TradFi) price discovery mechanisms.

Hyperliquid is evolving into a global financial super app, driving massive trading volume.

1. Institutional Fund Inflows and ETFs

Institutional interest in HYPE is one of the biggest current market drivers. Companies like Bitwise, Grayscale, and 21Shares are pushing significant ETF fund inflows and acquisitions, helping the token reach a market cap of $15 billion.

The US spot HYPE ETF was launched on May 12 alongside the 21Shares Hyperliquid ETF. At that time, HYPE’s market cap was just over $10 billion. However, the total net assets of the HYPE ETF are now slightly below $60 million. This alone is not enough to explain the $5 billion increase in market cap in less than two weeks.

Nevertheless, new entrants in the HYPE ETF space are also pushing prices higher. Over the past two weeks, Grayscale (which submitted an S-1 form for a HYPE ETF to the SEC in January) has accumulated $25 million worth of HYPE and staked it.

You can track HYPE wallets associated with Grayscale:

0x300e402193bc8F27d408FceaEBCb7eD6E5811822

0x6183AeCb22b09b4CB167F2B42C611243C7E74318

2. Pre-IPO Trading and Disruption of Traditional Finance

A key advantage of the Hyperliquid platform, and one of the core drivers of trading volume and network usage, is its support for trading pre-IPO stocks — for example, SpaceX.

Stock trading provides traders with a unique defensive barrier, extending their capital allocation into traditional equity speculation, helping them diversify risk amid broader crypto market declines.

The upcoming listings of heavyweight companies like Anthropic, OpenAI, and SpaceX continue to boost platform attention and trading volume.

The recent Cerebras IPO is an interesting case of pre-IPO stock trading. It demonstrates that Hyperliquid’s efficiency in price discovery can rival mainstream traditional financial institutions, achieving fair competition between decentralized exchanges and established markets.

3. TVL, Trading Volume, and Network Usage

The Hyperliquid ecosystem is thriving in multiple aspects. This month, Hyperliquid’s total value locked (TVL) has again surpassed $5 billion. The last time it exceeded $5 billion was during the bull market peak in October last year.

According to CoinGecko data, Hyperliquid’s perpetual contract trading volume increased by 47% in the past 24 hours, reaching $8.8 billion. Open interest is at a 6-month high, at $9.5 billion.

4. A Financial Super App?

All of these features directly reinforce the overall narrative around the platform: becoming a global financial super app. Hyperliquid founder Jeff Yan believes the platform will eventually encompass the entire financial system.

Hyperliquid is bridging the gap between decentralized technology and traditional stock markets. With its robust pre-IPO market, continuous institutional ETF fund inflows, and a sharp rise in network trading volume, HYPE is operating in a significantly advantageous zone and has already broken previous all-time highs.

HyperEVM — Hyperliquid’s smart contract layer — is now supported by Arkham Intel. This means you can track whale addresses and top holders of HYPE, and utilize Arkham Intel’s full suite of tools to analyze HyperEVM data.