HYPE Rallies Double Digits as Spot ETF Inflows Outpace Token Burn
HYPE, the token of decentralized exchange Hyperliquid, rose about 15% on Thursday to near $57, with US-listed HYPE ETFs logging strong early inflows. Sources differ on the ETF figures, with reported trading volume and net buying ranging from $22 million to $41 million.
Written by CoinArticle’s AI Newsroom · from 2 cited sources. How we work
Token Price and Market Move
HYPE traded at $57.20 on Thursday, up 15.3% on the day, according to CoinGecko data cited by Decrypt, after touching an intraday high of $58.97. CryptoPotato reported that HYPE has risen about 37% since the first US HYPE ETF launched on May 12, and nearly 40% so far in May, bringing its year-to-date gain to roughly 123%. Over the same day, Zcash rose 12% and Worldcoin 7%, according to Decrypt.
ETF Flows: Where the Sources Disagree
The two reports differ on the ETF figures, and the gap matters for how the flows are read. Decrypt, citing SoSoValue, said the newly launched Hyperliquid ETFs logged $25.5 million in net buying on Wednesday and $22.35 million across their first five days. CryptoPotato, also citing SoSoValue, put combined trading volume for 21Shares' THYP and Bitwise's BHYP at nearly $41 million since launch, and reported net inflows of $1.2 million for THYP on May 12 and $750,000 for BHYP on May 14. Net flow and gross trading volume are different measures, so the two numbers are not directly comparable, and neither source reconciles them.
Decrypt framed Wednesday's net buying as 17 times the token's daily Assistance Fund burn of roughly $1.4 million, per Dune Analytics. That comparison depends on the burn estimate, which Decrypt attributes to a single analytics source. Balchunas, quoted by CryptoPotato, said trading volume in both funds rose another 50% on Wednesday alone, and described the steady first-week activity as rare for new ETFs.
Institutional Holders and Analyst Views
Lookonchain reported, as cited by CryptoPotato, that wallets linked to Grayscale bought and staked 510,387 HYPE, worth about $24.95 million, over the past week. A wallet linked to Galaxy Digital bought 158,100 HYPE, worth around $8.8 million. Grayscale's own HYPE ETF application, filed in March, remains under review by US regulators.
Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan published a memo on Tuesday titled "Hyperliquid Is What You Get When Crypto Is Allowed To Grow Up," arguing that investors misvalue HYPE by treating Hyperliquid as a crypto perpetual exchange rather than a broader financial platform. Per CryptoPotato, Hougan said nearly half of the platform's trading volume now comes from non-crypto assets, including commodities, S&P 500 futures, pre-IPO stocks and prediction markets. Bitwise also said it would direct 10% of its ETF management fee toward holding HYPE on its balance sheet. These are issuer statements and have not been independently verified.
Broader Market Context
Decrypt noted that the rally came as Nvidia reported first-quarter revenue of $81.6 billion, up 85% year over year and above the $78.9 billion Wall Street estimate, and as its shares fell more than 3% in after-hours trading. Decrypt said altcoin sentiment held up despite the mixed tech-stock reaction. CryptoPotato, by contrast, described most major asset classes, including Bitcoin, as having declined recently, which underlines that HYPE's gains ran against a softer broader market.
Why It Matters
For Traders
Net ETF inflows and a sharp price move have clustered in a short window, so near-term price action may be sensitive to any reversal in daily ETF flows.
For Investors
Spot-style ETF access for HYPE is a structural change in who can buy the token, though early inflow figures conflict across sources and the Grayscale product is still pending.
For Builders
Growing ETF demand alongside the token's revenue buyback design makes HYPE supply mechanics and fee flows more closely watched by protocols building on Hyperliquid.
This article is for information only and is not financial advice. Read the full disclaimer.
