As 2025 draws to a close, Hyperliquid, the titan of Decentralized Perpetual Exchanges (Perp DEXs), has reached a pivotal 48-hour window in its history. Following a staggering annual revenue report of $844 million, the protocol today faces a major test with the scheduled unlock of tokens valued at $256 million.
I. Core Performance Overview: The "Dominance" of a DEX King
According to the latest 2025 operational data, Hyperliquid has achieved exponential growth, solidifying its position as a powerhouse in the DeFi sector.
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| Metric | 2025 Annual Data | Key Insight |
| Total Revenue | $844 Million | ~95.8% derived from perpetual trading fees |
| Total Trading Volume | $2.95 Trillion | Daily average volume of approximately $8.34B |
| New User Growth | 609,000+ | Platform activity surged significantly since Q1 |
| Net Inflows | $3.87 Billion | Demonstrates strong institutional and retail appeal |
| Top Asset (BTC) | $1.16 Trillion | Bitcoin remains the most traded asset on the platform |
II. Today’s Focus: The 9.92M HYPE Unlock and "Sell Pressure" Dynamics
At approximately 15:30 (Beijing Time) today, December 29, the Hyperliquid protocol officially unlocked 9.92 million HYPE tokens.
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Market Impact: This unlock represents approximately 2.87% of the current circulating supply. At a market price hovering around $25.80, the market faces a potential nominal sell pressure of $256 million.
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Strategic Predictability: To manage market expectations, the team unstaked 1.2 million HYPE tokens on December 28 as a precursor. Starting January 6, 2026, team-related unlocks will be fixed to the 6th of every month, aiming to eliminate "black-box" releases through enhanced predictability.
III. Ecosystem Expansion: HIP-3 and the Era of "On-Chain Equities"
One of Hyperliquid's most strategic moves in 2025 was the introduction of global equity assets via the HIP-3 Protocol.
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Synthetic Asset Performance: Nvidia (NVDA) emerged as the top-performing HIP-3 asset with a trading volume of $1.73 billion, followed closely by Tesla and Google.
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Developer Synergy: The combination of HIP-3 and Builder Codes has allowed third-party developers to launch custom markets on Hyperliquid’s high-performance infrastructure, a move seen as a "killer feature" to compete with traditional centralized exchanges.
IV. Economic Defenses: $645M in Buybacks and $1B Burn
To counter inflationary pressures, Hyperliquid has implemented an aggressive "Deflationary Defense" strategy:
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Massive Token Burn: A recent governance proposal successfully removed and burned approximately 37 million HYPE from the Assistance Fund, valued at nearly $1 billion. This mechanism, fueled by real protocol revenue, is effectively offsetting the dilution from token releases.
V. Recent Context: Clarifying "Insider Trading" Allegations
On the eve of the unlock, allegations regarding "insider shorting" surfaced on social media. Hyperliquid Labs responded swiftly:
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Identity Clarification: The flagged wallet belongs to a former employee who was terminated in Q1 2024. Their actions do not represent the current team.
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Strict Trading Ban: The team reiterated that all current employees and contractors are strictly prohibited from trading HYPE derivatives, maintaining a zero-tolerance policy toward insider activity.
Summary and Outlook
Despite today's massive unlock, HYPE's price has shown resilience, reflecting market confidence in the protocol's "Buyback + Burn" support system. The next major window for investors will be the first official team distribution on January 6, 2026. With the stellar performance of 2025, Hyperliquid is proving that profitable DeFi protocols can leverage strong cash flows to successfully navigate cyclical token inflation.