$HYPE, the native token of the Hyperliquid DeFi platform, is up 8.8% and 22.55% over 24h and 1 week, respectively, trading at $44.64 at press time. This makes the token the best performer among the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market cap. So, what exactly has driven this growth?
Factors behind the $HYPE upswing
For one, Hyperliquid is the top-ranked on-chain perpetual trading platform, boasting about 73% of the decentralized perpetual DEX market share. The platform also leads in trading volume (including that of real-world assets), open interest, and active users. Even more, Hyperliquid recently surpassed Coinbase’s notional derivatives trading volume and is now considered a worthy competitor to Binance.
Source: DefiLlama
Number two: the platform employs price-sensitive token-deflationary mechanics by burning more tokens than it mints. This feature has attracted high-profile investors, including BitMEX co-founder and former CEO Arthur Hayes.
Thirdly, the token has gained institutional interest through Bitwise’s spot $HYPE ETF. The product is currently live in Europe while awaiting regulatory approval in the US.
Fourth, Hyperliquid’s resilience has attracted many developers to its platform, while its high liquidity maintains traders.
Factors promoting future rally
So, what future events are expected to drive $HYPE’s value even higher?
The first is the spot ETF approvals in the US, including those of Bitwise, Grayscale, 21Shares, and VanEck, with a trading fee war expected to ensue in a bid to dominate the space.
Next is yesterday’s introduction of the $HYPE-denominated transaction priority fees. The platform now requires priority transactions to pay higher fees, which are all eventually burned in line with its deflationary mechanism.
Third is the HIP-4 proposal, which will integrate the billion-dollar prediction market with Hyperliquid. Another upgrade is the CoreWriter integration, which will foster the development of better communicating dApps on the platform.
The May 6 unlocking of about 10 million $HYPE tokens will be a decisive moment – whether it increases selling pressure or the tokens are absorbed by buy demand remains to be seen.
All of these have led to price predictions ranging from $150 by Hayes to $34 by 3Commas.