How Hyperliquid Becomes the Backend for ALL of Finance | Tushar Jain
7/7/2026 · 54 min · transcript via whisper
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Key topics
— Portfolio margining across asset classes as the core competitive moat for Hyperliquid, enabling cross-collateral trades (Bitcoin paired with rate futures, commodities with equities) that competitors cannot easily replicate at scale.
— HIP3 (permissionless market creation) and builder codes as twin decentralization vectors that transform Hyperliquid from a first-party exchange into a platform, with HIP3 volumes already reaching ~33% of total volume in months.
— Direct value capture model: all revenue (trading fees, priority fees, stablecoin yield from the Coinbase USDC deal) flows to buy and burn the HYPE token, with no equity entity or routing ambiguity.
— Real traction signals measured by liquidation data and open interest rather than farmed volume; Hyperliquid shows higher liquidation-to-volume ratios than competitors (Lighter, Aster), indicating genuine directional risk-taking.
— Regulatory pathway to US markets via Clarity Act-style safe harbors for decentralized finance, plus regulated front ends plugging into Hyperliquid's backend—a multi-year process already showing early progress.
— Team execution and motivation: 14 engineers sustaining relentless shipping velocity post-windfall wealth; founder conviction on the "everything exchange" vision for DeFi as core thesis strength.
Market & price signals
— Multicoin's base case values HYPE at $319 (5x from $63), derived from four critical assumptions: crypto derivatives volume growth (35% annualized in base case vs. historical 45%), DEX market share reaching 32% (vs. current 16%), Hyperliquid holding 30% of DEX open interest (conservative vs. current 59%), and stablecoin-to-volume ratios from the Coinbase deal. Bear case $160 billion valuation ($319 per token at 20x earnings multiple); bull case higher. Lighter trades at 6.5x revenue multiple; Hyperliquid at ~18x, reflecting market confidence in revenue durability. Current perp penetration in tradfi and finance broadly remains low, presenting structural growth runway.
Actionable insights
— Evaluate Hyperliquid against the four core assumptions in Multicoin's framework (derivatives growth rate, DEX share, Hyperliquid share, stablecoin yield), rather than accepting price targets as gospel; the framework itself is the reusable lens.
— Monitor liquidation-to-volume ratios and open interest sustainability as proxies for real user traction; avoid platforms relying on incentivized volume or subsidized funding-fee rebates, which inflate metrics without durable engagement.
— Watch for builder code and HIP3 adoption as leading indicators of platformization success; early signs (Fantom, MetaMask integration; TradeXYZ as dominant HIP3 deployer) suggest competitive moat strengthening, though Coinbase routing remains a key unproven catalyst.
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— OKX just launched trading bots and agent payments protocol; new US users who deposit and trade can earn up to app.okx.com/join/USBANKLESS. Not investment advice; not available in New York or Texas.
— BitGet just launched Stocks 2.0, letting you trade tokenized equities directly with USDT inside the same app for crypto, with dividends and corporate actions reflected automatically; trade at bankless.cc/bitget-stocks. Not investment advice.
— The DeFi Report, hosted by Michael Nadeau, publishes weekly 30-minute episodes analyzing portfolio holdings, market structure, entry targets, and Bitcoin/Ether fair value across the cycle; new episodes every Wednesday on thedefireport.io/bankless.