Hyperliquid Defies Market Rout After Ripple Tie-up, Despite Waning Sentiment

In brief Hyperliquid is up over 40% over the past fortnight after its monthly token unlock was slashed to 140,000 HYPE, drastically reducing sell-side pressure. Ripple added the DEX to its institutional prime brokerage platform, marking its first direct DeFi integration. Despite the rally, prediction market odds of Hyperliquid hitting $41 have fallen 10 points since last Friday. While major cryptocurrencies have declined over the past two weeks, Hyperliquid's price has posted a defiant double-digit rally over the same period, a divergence analysts attribute to its fundamental utility and reduced token supply pressure rather than speculative hype. HYPE’s performance follows two key developments for Hyperliquid: a major institutional partnership and a drastic reduction in its monthly token supply unlock. Hyperliquid’s HYPE token is up 41.5% over the past two weeks. It surged over 5% in Monday’s Asian trading session before paring gains; it is currently trading at $31.53, down 1% in the past 24 hours, per CoinGecko data . HYPE's bullish momentum coincides with Ripple adding the decentralized exchange to its institutional prime brokerage platform, Ripple Prime, according to a Wednesday announcement . Hyperliquid, meet Ripple Prime: https://t.co/RZWdbRfHoe We’re now enabling institutions to access onchain derivatives liquidity through @HyperliquidX in a streamlined and secure way. Customers can also efficiently cross-margin crypto with all asset classes supported by our prime… — Ripple (@Ripple) February 4, 2026 The move marks the first time Ripple's U.S.-focused platform has directly integrated a DeFi venue since its launch in November 2025. Nima Beni, founder of Bitlease, argued that Hyperliquid is holding "because it’s built on usage, not hype," adding that, "When liquidity tightens, the difference between real products and narrative-driven tokens becomes obvious." The Ripple Prime announcement has “clearly added momentum,” Ryan Lee, chief analyst at Bitget, told Decrypt, though he noted it explains “only part of the move.”  HYPE’s tokenomics tweaked A more significant driver may be Hyperliquid’s updated tokenomics . A January 29 announcement revealed that only 140,000 HYPE tokens would be unlocked in February—an 88% reduction from January’s 1.2 million unlock, drastically reducing sell-side pressure. This removed roughly $34 million in monthly sell pressure, Jonatan Randin, senior market analyst at PrimeXBT, told Decrypt . Lee attributes HYPE’s sustained rally to the market pricing in “broader platform growth,” pointing to Hyperliquid’s robust derivatives infrastructure and the recent launch of its HIP-3 upgrade, which introduced non-crypto markets like commodities and equities. “That ‘strong utility-driven demand’ has allowed the token’s price to “decouple from Bitcoin’s recent decline,” he explained. Looking ahead, Lee sees further catalysts. He cited the upcoming HIP-4 upgrade , which will introduce outcome-based prediction markets and USDH-denominated trading, as a key driver. “At the same time, non-crypto markets enabled through HIP-3, such as commodities and equities, are driving new volume, while a growing builder ecosystem is creating specialized tools that reinforce adoption, revenue growth, and ongoing HYPE token burns,” the Bitget analyst said. Despite these strong fundamentals, retail sentiment appears to be wavering. On prediction market Myriad , owned by Decrypt 's parent company Dastan, users now assign only a 38% chance that Hyperliquid’s next major move will be a retest of $41, down from 48% last Friday. It suggests growing near-term caution even as the project's long-term narrative strengthens. “What we’re seeing is an extinction phase. The era of thousands of indistinguishable tokens is ending, and capital is rotating toward platforms people actually use under stress,” Beni said. Daily Debrief Newsletter Start every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more. Your Email Get it! Get it!