Trump opens the door for Hyperliquid in the US: HYPE token surges 23%
The cryptocurrency market received a powerful signal: the U.S. administration has officially set a course toward legalizing Hyperliquid. After President Donald Trump's public statement about regulators working on a full-scale launch of the platform in the country, the native token HYPE reacted with an immediate surge — more than 6% within a few hours, and by the morning of August 20, the cumulative gain reached an impressive 23.5%.
Trump's speech took place on August 19 at a meeting with leaders of leading crypto and technology companies at the White House. The president paid special attention to the head of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Mike Selig, publicly thanking him for his efforts to legalize Hyperliquid. Among the invitees were also top executives from Coinbase, Ripple, and Nasdaq, as well as SEC Chairman Paul Atkins.
A breakthrough for decentralized finance
Hyperliquid is a leading decentralized perpetual futures exchange that is currently forced to block access for users from the United States. This restriction leaves a serious mark on the platform's development, given that American traders dominate the derivatives market. According to Trump, Selig is working to bring Hyperliquid to the U.S. "fully legally and transparently."
Selig himself promised to reveal regulatory details as early as this coming Thursday. The date was not chosen by chance: on August 20, the first meeting of the CFTC's Advisory Committee on Innovation will take place in Washington, with crypto assets, artificial intelligence, and predictive markets on the agenda. The parties had been preparing for this event for several months: in July, the Hyperliquid Policy Center and the Phantom wallet filed a joint petition with the CFTC requesting that DeFi protocols be exempted from outdated exchange rules.
Market reaction and HYPE's position
HYPE's market capitalization reached approximately $15.1 billion, pushing the token to tenth place among all crypto assets. HYPE first surpassed Dogecoin back in May, entering the top 10. A legal entry into the U.S. market could bring Hyperliquid a significant influx of liquidity and fees, but resistance from traditional players has not gone away.
CME Group and NYSE's owner, ICE, are advocating for stricter control over the platform, citing risks of manipulation and sanctions violations. Compliance issues remain open: registration, identity verification, and leverage limits are difficult to apply to a non-custodial on-chain order book.
My expert take: The key moment is the committee meeting on Thursday. If Selig presents specific conditions rather than general principles, we could see a new wave of HYPE growth. However, we should not forget about institutional resistance — their lobbying power is significant, and the fight over regulating DeFi protocols is just beginning.