Hyperliquid’s native token, HYPE, has shattered previous records, climbing to a new all-time high of $37.24 (according to CoinGecko) on May 23. The impressive price surge marks a major milestone for the fast-rising decentralized derivatives platform and places HYPE among the most closely watched digital assets in the current crypto market.
The rally follows a week of massive momentum driven by favorable regulatory developments, increased whale activity, and skyrocketing open interest — which has now surged past $9.37 billion, signaling surging confidence in Hyperliquid’s ecosystem.
Regulatory Momentum Fuels DeFi Confidence
At press time, HYPE had risen 14.5% in the past 24 hours, jumping from $30.78 to $35.35, and gaining 37.7% in the last seven days. Over the past month, the token has surged by 94%, and is now up a staggering 868.7% year-to-date, after bottoming out at $3.81 late last year.
This bullish breakout comes as Bitcoin nears $112,000, pushing its total market cap past $2.2 trillion, boosting overall market sentiment.
Key to HYPE’s momentum is Hyperliquid Labs’ regulatory engagement. On May 23, the team revealed it had submitted two official comment letters to the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), advocating for thoughtful regulation of perpetual derivatives and 24/7 trading in decentralized finance (DeFi).
Hyperliquid praised the CFTC’s openness and pushed for frameworks that ensure both innovation and user protection, stating that clear guidelines will help keep the U.S. at the forefront of financial innovation.
“Supporting DeFi in the U.S. with open dialogue and a clear regulatory framework is an opportunity to ensure the U.S. remains a leader in financial innovation while robustly protecting users,” Hyperliquid stated.
$9B+ Open Interest Underscores DeFi Surge
Investor enthusiasm has translated into record-breaking open interest across Hyperliquid, which soared past $9.3 billion — demolishing its previous record of $8 billion just days prior, according to CoinGlass.
Open interest in HYPE contracts alone reached $747 million, ranking third behind only Bitcoin ($4.06B) and Ethereum ($1.21B). Meanwhile, 24-hour trading volume for HYPE exceeded $492 million, reflecting massive market participation.
Not all bets went in favor of the bulls, though. A whale who shorted HYPE with a 5x leveraged position worth $57 million was liquidated, incurring a painful $23.5 million loss, according to blockchain tracker Spot On Chain.
