HYPE Sets New Record High on ETF Buzz and Aggressive Buybacks

Hyperliquid's token HYPE pushed to fresh all-time highs as ETF speculation intensified and the protocol's buybacks continued to absorb supply. HYPE climbed to $64.48 before easing back toward $60, but sentiment stayed constructive as traders pointed to accelerating institutional demand and rising on-platform activity across perpetuals and prediction markets. Institutional interest has broadened sharply in recent weeks as investors look for crypto exposure beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum. The ETF race around HYPE has become increasingly crowded: Bitwise launched BHYP on NYSE Arca and 21Shares introduced THYP on Nasdaq, both drawing immediate interest. Combined inflows surged to $72.38 million last week, up from $2.52 million the prior week. Competition escalated after Grayscale entered the space. Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart said Grayscale filed an amended registration for a Hyperliquid trust expected to trade under the ticker GHYP. The filing lists Anchorage Digital Bank as custodian and Bank of New York Mellon as administrator. Buybacks remain a key support for HYPE. Hyperliquid directs 97% to 99% of trading fees to purchase HYPE on the open market, creating steady demand while gradually tightening circulating supply. Over the past week, the platform repurchased about 210,000 HYPE. The assistance fund holds 44.52 million tokens, cumulative buybacks total 26.81 million HYPE, and total repurchases have surpassed $1.16 billion. Activity on Hyperliquid has also set new highs. CoinGlass data shows futures open interest recently reached $2.95 billion, a record. Hyperliquid now accounts for nearly 70% of the on-chain perpetual futures market and about 7% of total perpetual open interest across all venues. The protocol's move into prediction markets has added another growth tailwind. Hyperliquid's HIP4 prediction market processed 6.05 million contracts on its first trading day.