Hyperliquid Launches HYPE Token with $1B Airdrop, No VCs Involved, Token Hits $4B Valuation

Nov 29, 2024, 08:10 AM

Hyperliquid, a decentralized exchange, launched its native token HYPE during a seamless genesis event on November 29 at 07:30 UTC. The max supply of HYPE is 1,000,000,000 tokens, with 31% (310 million tokens) allocated to an initial community airdrop to eligible participants. An additional 38.888% is reserved for future emissions and community rewards, and 23.8% is allocated to current and future core contributors. Notably, there are no allocations for private investors, venture capitalists, centralized exchanges, or market makers. HYPE serves as the gas token for Hyperliquid's HyperEVM, supporting staking, securing the HyperBFT consensus, and powering USDC trading. Upon launch, HYPE traded at approximately $3.3 per token, reaching up to $4.1 per token, with a fully diluted valuation exceeding $4 billion. Trading volume was significant, with $100 million recorded within the first 30 minutes, matching those of Tier 1 centralized exchanges. Early users received substantial amounts in the airdrop, with the total value of distributed tokens surpassing $1 billion, making it one of the largest airdrops in the cryptocurrency space. Hyperliquid has experienced rapid growth, reporting $1.6 billion in daily trading volume in November.