A little-known segment of the cryptocurrency world is reportedly attracting attention amid a market downturn.
“HYPE” exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have begun taking in new assets from investors even as the price of bitcoin falls, CNBC reported Saturday (June 6).
Last month, the report said, Bitwise and 21shares introduced spot ETFs tracking indexes for HYPE, a decentralized crypto asset that operates on its own blockchain, hyperliquid. The products trade under the tickers BHYP and THYP. So far, they have taken in around $150 million in assets and have mostly experienced positive net inflow days, CNBC added.
“This is a market that’s 1% penetrated into its potential market. Most people still don’t know what hyperliquid is,” Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan told the network.
According to the report, hyperliquid is a decentralized perpetual futures exchange that operates 24/7 for traders outside the U.S. It was virtually unknown until the U.S. war on Iran, when it attracted investors who wanted to access oil markets on the weekends.
Its reception, CNBC contended, has been difficult to ignore, particularly at a moment when bitcoin is undergoing a massive selloff. However, the report said, the money flowing into HYPE is more about investors finding something new than funds rotating out of existing crypto.
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“Hyperliquid is bringing new investors from outside of the crypto ecosystem into this particular digital asset. I think it speaks to a much different type of investor than bitcoin,” said Zach Pandl, Grayscale head of research.
Meanwhile, PYMNTS wrote last week about another area of the digital asset market seemingly unaffected by the bitcoin-driven upheaval: stablecoins.
These tokens, the report said, have been “behaving as if the downturn barely matters at all,” with banks, card networks, FinTechs and crypto-native firms all advancing a series of moves suggesting increased investment “into the next phase of real-world adoption.”
The emphasis, PYMNTS continued, has moved toward how programmable dollars can improve the nuts and bolts of transmitting money across networks in which timing, liquidity and operational efficiency matter most.
“In many ways, stablecoins are becoming decoupled from crypto speculation itself,” that report said. “The market turmoil affecting digital asset treasury stocks illustrates the difference. Companies heavily exposed to token price volatility continue to behave like leveraged crypto proxies. Stablecoin businesses, meanwhile, are increasingly positioning themselves as financial infrastructure providers.”