Hyperliquid has surpassed the $10 billion mark in open interest: a new record for decentralized derivatives.
The Hyperliquid platform, specializing in perpetual futures trading, has reached a historic milestone: open interest has exceeded $10 billion. This metric places the protocol third among all derivatives venues, including centralized exchanges. The growth was made possible by an aggressive expansion of its instrument lineup.
Traditional Assets as a Growth Driver
A key factor was the introduction of markets for traditional assets: stocks, commodities, and stock indices. Contracts for oil and the Nasdaq 100 index stand out in particular, with their daily trading volume regularly exceeding $100 million. Approximately $4 billion of open interest comes from decentralized exchanges built by third-party developers under the HIP-3 initiative. This demonstrates that Hyperliquid is evolving into a full-fledged ecosystem, rather than just a standalone protocol.
Pre-IPO markets have also attracted traders' attention. Ahead of the anticipated SpaceX listing, open interest for the corresponding contract reached $250 million. This confirms growing demand for synthetic instruments that allow exposure to assets before their official exchange listing.
Transition to USDC and a New Economic Model
An important milestone in Hyperliquid's development was the full transition to the USDC stablecoin. After integrating the USDH brand with the participation of Circle and Coinbase, USDC became the platform's primary settlement asset. Under the partnership terms, issuers are required to stake HYPE tokens and share protocol revenue from reserves. Hyperliquid will receive approximately 90% of profits from Treasury bonds and repo transactions backing USDC on-chain. At current rates, this will generate around $160 million annually for the platform.
These additional revenues will go toward buying back and burning native HYPE tokens. The expected buyback volume is $450 million. Reducing supply should support the asset's market value, benefiting both holders and the entire ecosystem.
Position in the Derivatives Market
Recall that in May, Hyperliquid's share of total perpetual futures trading volume on centralized exchanges reached a record 6.63% — $200 billion out of $3 trillion. The current growth in open interest to $10 billion only confirms the trend: decentralized platforms are gradually winning market share from traditional CEXs.
Analytical Conclusion: Hyperliquid demonstrates that DeFi derivatives can compete with centralized counterparts not only in functionality but also in liquidity. The transition to USDC and the introduction of pre-IPO markets are strategic moves that attract institutional traders. If growth rates persist, we could see Hyperliquid in the top 2 by open interest within the coming quarters.