HYPE Rebounds Amid Crypto Sell-Off
Just days after plunging nearly 10% on reports that rivals ICE and CME had urged U.S. regulators to target Hyperliquid, HYPE jumped by more than 5% Monday. The token’s surge came amid a sell-off across the crypto market that saw bitcoin tumble below $77,000 for the first time in more than two weeks.
Market data show that at midnight, HYPE not only matched its May 15 peak of just under $47, but it also briefly surpassed that threshold. While the token had retreated to $45.50 by 5:11 a.m. EDT, the surge brought its market capitalization to $10.85 billion, a nearly $1 billion increase from the $9.9 billion observed on May 16.
In the derivatives market, HYPE’s climb triggered the liquidation of $7.1 million in leveraged positions, with shorts accounting for approximately 75% of the total. According to Coinglass, some 2,279 HYPE traders were liquidated worldwide; at $877,299, the largest single liquidation involved the token.
While the reported attempts by rivals CME and ICE to have regulators scrutinize Hyperliquid seemingly triggered the token’s Saturday plunge, analysts believe Bitwise’s launch of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) the previous day played a role in its recovery. The first spot ETF for HYPE and the first to incorporate in-house staking, BHYP officially began trading on the NYSE Arca on May 15.
On its debut, the ETF saw $4.31 million in trading volume, reportedly the largest opening day for a U.S. spot altcoin ETF in 2026. Unlike competitors that may use third-party providers, Bitwise manages the staking of the fund’s HYPE holdings through its in-house division, Bitwise Onchain Solutions. This allows the fund to capture staking rewards that are accrued back to the net asset value.
Meanwhile, HYPE’s upward trend came as the majority of altcoins, including bitcoin, saw losses. Leading high-cap altcoins down were BCH, which dropped 12%, and DOGE, which retreated nearly 6% to $0.104. The majority of these high-cap altcoins saw losses ranging between 2% and 4%, which helped drag the aggregate market cap of altcoins close to the $1 trillion mark.
Overall, the sell-off across the cryptocurrency market resulted in the total market capitalization dropping from just under $2.7 trillion to $2.65 trillion.
