Hyperliquid Whale Pulls Out $122 Million in HYPE Tokens Amid Arthur Hayes’ Departure and Unlock Worries

By: crypto insight|2025/09/22 14:40:03

Imagine holding onto a massive crypto stash for months, watching it skyrocket, and then deciding it’s time to cash in just as the market braces for a flood of new supply. That’s exactly the drama unfolding with Hyperliquid’s HYPE token, where a major investor recently made a bold move that has everyone talking.

Massive Whale Withdrawal Sparks Market Jitters

Big-time crypto players, often called whales, are starting to exit their positions in Hyperliquid’s native HYPE token, fueling worries about an impending token release that could dump billions into the market. One standout whale, tracked by the wallet address “0x316f,” pulled out a whopping $122 million in HYPE tokens on a Monday, tokens they’d snapped up at around $12 each. After nine months of patient holding, this investor was looking at roughly $90 million in unrealized gains, likely locking in profits as per insights from blockchain analytics.

This withdrawal hit right after HYPE surged to a record high of $59.29 on a Thursday, but now the token faces its biggest challenge yet with team allocations set to unlock starting November 29—a full year post the project’s launch. It’s like a ticking clock, reminding us how even the hottest tokens can feel the pressure from scheduled supply increases.

As of today, September 22, 2025, HYPE is trading at $45.12, down from its peak, reflecting ongoing market caution. This drop contrasts sharply with the token’s earlier rally, highlighting how unlocks can act like a storm cloud over investor confidence.

Insights from Analysts on Token Unlocks

Drawing from expert views, like those from research analysts at platforms tracking crypto intelligence, token unlocks often stir up selling pressure that isn’t always linked to a project’s core strengths. Not every recipient dumps their shares; some hold firm to show faith in the venture, much like loyal fans sticking with a sports team through tough seasons.

The Hyper Foundation outlines that 23.8% of the total HYPE supply is earmarked for core team members, rolling out over 24 months and potentially releasing about $11.9 billion worth. This setup has been labeled a “Sword of Damocles” by some funds, dangling a monthly influx of around $500 million, with only a fraction—about 17%—soaked up by buybacks, leaving a hefty $410 million that could weigh on prices.

Picture it like a dam slowly opening: the initial trickle might not flood the valley, but sustained releases test the ecosystem’s resilience. Real-world data backs this—past unlocks in similar projects have led to temporary dips, yet strong fundamentals often help tokens rebound, as seen in cases where community support and utility drive long-term value.

Arthur Hayes Cashes In for Luxury Ahead of Vesting

Adding to the intrigue, BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes’ family office, Maelstrom, dropped its HYPE holdings right around the time research highlighted these unlock risks. Hayes himself shared that he used the proceeds for a down payment on a sleek new Ferrari 849 Testarossa, which retails for up to $590,000. “Need to pay my deposit on the new Rari 849 Testarossa,” he quipped on a Sunday, blending crypto gains with real-world splurges in a way that resonates with many in the space who dream of turning digital assets into tangible rewards.

This move came amid a broader shift, with other whales eyeing alternatives like Aster, a rising decentralized perpetuals exchange tied to notable figures in crypto. One whale address, “0x220,” scooped up $10.5 million in Aster tokens via two wallets, now sitting on over $6 million in unrealized profits. Over the past week back then, Aster skyrocketed more than 1,700%, claiming the fourth spot among top DEX tokens with a $2.5 billion market cap, while HYPE dipped 7.9% to $49.34.

Fast-forward to now in 2025, Aster has continued its momentum, boasting a market cap of $3.8 billion, showcasing how competition can heat up in the DEX arena. These shifts underline the fast-paced nature of crypto, where one project’s unlock concerns can propel investors toward fresher opportunities.

Growing Institutional Interest in Crypto

On a brighter note, the broader crypto landscape is seeing increased institutional appetite, fueled by new treasury adoptions and regulatory tweaks. Think of it as traditional finance finally warming up to digital assets, much like how smartphones went from novelty to necessity. This trend supports platforms that align with reliability and innovation, enhancing overall market maturity.

Speaking of alignment, savvy traders are turning to exchanges that prioritize seamless integration with emerging tokens like HYPE. For instance, WEEX exchange stands out with its user-friendly interface and robust security features, making it a go-to for both whales and everyday investors navigating volatile markets. By offering low fees, advanced trading tools, and a commitment to transparency, WEEX enhances brand credibility, helping users capitalize on opportunities without the hassle—truly a partner in the crypto journey that feels like having a trusted advisor by your side.

Community Buzz and Latest Updates

Diving into what’s hot online, Google searches are buzzing with questions like “What happens during HYPE token unlocks?” and “Is Arthur Hayes still investing in Hyperliquid?”—reflecting curiosity about market impacts and high-profile moves. On Twitter, discussions exploded around #HYPEToken and #CryptoWhales, with users debating if the unlocks signal weakness or just routine cycles. Recent tweets from crypto influencers highlight Hayes’ Ferrari purchase as a symbol of crypto success, while official Hyperliquid announcements confirm the vesting is proceeding as planned, with no changes to the November 29 start date.

Latest updates as of September 22, 2025, show HYPE’s price stabilizing amid broader market recovery, with trading volume up 15% in the last 24 hours, per real-time blockchain data. Meanwhile, Aster’s surge continues, but Hyperliquid’s team has teased upcoming features to boost liquidity, potentially countering unlock pressures—evidence that the project remains resilient despite the whale exits.

This story isn’t just about one whale or a famous exit; it’s a reminder of crypto’s thrilling ups and downs, where timing and strategy can turn holdings into fortunes, much like navigating a high-stakes game where the rules evolve with every play.

FAQ

What are the risks associated with HYPE token unlocks?

Token unlocks can introduce selling pressure as new supply enters the market, potentially lowering prices temporarily. However, not all tokens are sold immediately, and strong project fundamentals often help mitigate long-term impacts, as seen in data from similar crypto releases.

Why did Arthur Hayes sell his HYPE tokens?

Hayes cashed out to fund a personal purchase, like his new Ferrari, amid concerns over the upcoming vesting schedule. This move, shared publicly, highlights how even prominent figures balance crypto gains with real-life spending.

How does Hyperliquid compare to competitors like Aster?

Hyperliquid focuses on its native ecosystem and perpetuals trading, while Aster has gained traction with rapid growth. Both offer decentralized exchange features, but Hyperliquid’s established vesting plan provides a structured approach, contrasting Aster’s newer momentum in market cap and adoption.

Over the past 24 hours, the crypto market has shown strong momentum across multiple dimensions. The mainstream discussion has focused on Coinbase's official entry into the prediction market through the acquisition of The Clearing Company, as well as the intense controversy within the AAVE community regarding token incentives and governance rights.

In terms of ecosystem development, Solana has introduced the innovative Kora fee layer aimed at reducing user transaction costs; meanwhile, the Perp DEX competition has intensified, with the showdown between Hyperliquid and Lighter sparking widespread community discussion on the future of decentralized derivatives.

I. Mainstream Topics

1. Coinbase Acquires The Clearing Company, Officially Entering Prediction Market

This week, Coinbase announced the acquisition of The Clearing Company, marking another significant move to deepen its presence in this field after last week's announcement of launching a prediction market on its platform.

The Clearing Company's founder, Toni Gemayel, and the team will join Coinbase to jointly drive the development of the prediction market business.

Coinbase's Product Lead, Shan Aggarwal, stated that the growth of the prediction market is still in its early stages and predicts that 2026 will be the breakout year for this field.

The community has reacted positively to this, generally believing that Coinbase's entry will bring significant traffic and compliance advantages to the prediction market. However, this has also sparked discussions about the industry's competitive landscape.

Jai Bhavnani, Founder of Rivalry, commented that for startups, if their product model proves to be successful, industry giants like Coinbase have ample reason to replicate it.

This serves as a reminder to all entrepreneurs in the crypto space that they must build significant moats to withstand competition pressure from these giants.

2. Kalshi Launches Kalshi Research and Integrates BSC Network

Regulated prediction market platform Kalshi launched its research arm, Kalshi Research, this week, aimed at opening its internal data to the academic community and researchers to facilitate exploration of prediction market-related topics.

Its inaugural research report highlights Kalshi's outperformance in predicting inflation compared to Wall Street's traditional models. Kalshi co-founder Luana Lopes Lara commented that the power of prediction markets lies in the valuable data they generate, and it is now time to better utilize this data.

Meanwhile, Kalshi announced its support for the BNB Chain (BSC), allowing users to deposit and withdraw BNB and USDT via the BSC network.

This move is seen as a significant step for Kalshi to open its platform to a broader crypto user base, aiming to unlock access to the world's largest prediction market. Furthermore, Kalshi also revealed plans to host the first Prediction Market Summit in 2026 to further drive industry engagement and development.

3. AAVE Token Incentive Controversy Persists as Founders and Whales Increase Holdings Against the Market Trend

The AAVE community recently engaged in heated debates around an Aave Improvement Proposal (AIP) titled "AAVE Tokenomics Alignment Phase One - Ownership Governance," aiming to transfer ownership and control of the Aave brand from Aave Labs to Aave DAO.

Aave founder Stani Kulechov publicly stated his intention to vote against the proposal, believing it oversimplifies the complex legal and operational structure, potentially slowing down the development process of core products like Aave V4.

The community's reaction was polarized. Some criticized Stani for adopting a "double standard" in governance and questioned whether his team had siphoned off protocol revenue, while others supported his cautious stance, arguing that significant governance changes require more thorough discussion.

This controversy highlights the tension between the ideal of DAO governance in DeFi projects and the actual power held by core development teams.

Despite governance disputes putting pressure on the AAVE token price, on-chain data shows that Stani Kulechov himself has purchased millions of dollars' worth of AAVE in the past few hours.

Simultaneously, a whale address, 0xDDC4, which had been quiet for 6 months, once again spent 500 ETH (approximately $1.53 million) to purchase 9,629 AAVE tokens. Data indicates that this whale has accumulated nearly 40,000 AAVE over the past year but is currently in an unrealized loss position.

The founder and whale's increased holdings during market volatility were interpreted by some investors as a confidence signal in AAVE's long-term value.

4. Top Articles: DeFi Curators and Ethereum Annual Summary

In this week's top article, Morpho Labs' "Curator Explained" detailed the role of "curators" in DeFi.

The article likened curators to asset managers in traditional finance, who design, deploy, and manage on-chain vaults, providing users with a one-click diversified investment portfolio.

Unlike traditional fund managers, DeFi curators execute strategies automatically through non-custodial smart contracts, allowing users to maintain full control of their assets. The article offered a new perspective on the specialization and risk management in the DeFi space.

Another widely circulated article, "Ethereum 2025: From Experiment to Global Infrastructure," provided a comprehensive summary of Ethereum's development over the past year. The article noted that 2025 is a crucial year for Ethereum's transition from an experimental project to global financial infrastructure. Through the Pectra and Fusaka hard forks, Ethereum achieved significant reductions in account abstraction and transaction costs.

Furthermore, the SEC's clarification of Ethereum's "non-securities" nature and the launch of tokenized funds on the Ethereum mainnet by traditional financial giants like JPMorgan marked Ethereum's gaining recognition from mainstream institutions. The article suggested that whether it is the continued growth of DeFi, the thriving L2 ecosystem, or the integration with the AI field, Ethereum's vision as the "world computer" is gradually becoming a reality.

II. Mainstream Ecosystem Updates

1. Solana: Launches Kora Fee Layer and propAMM Data Research

The Solana Foundation engineering team released a fee layer solution called Kora this week.

Kora is a fee relayer and signatory node designed to provide the Solana ecosystem with a more flexible transaction fee payment method. Through Kora, users will be able to achieve gas-free transactions or choose to pay network fees using any stablecoin or SPL token. This innovation is seen as an important step in lowering the barrier of entry for new users and improving Solana network's availability.

Additionally, a deep research report on propAMM (proactive market maker) sparked community interest. The report's data analysis of propAMMs on Solana like HumidiFi indicated that Solana has achieved, or even surpassed, the level of transaction execution quality in traditional finance (TradFi) markets.

For example, on the SOL-USDC trading pair, HumidiFi is able to provide a highly competitive spread for large trades (0.4-1.6 bps), which is already better than the trading slippage of some mid-cap stocks in traditional markets.

Research suggests that propAMM is making the vision of the "Internet Capital Market" a reality, with Solana emerging as the prime venue for all of this to happen.

2. Perp DEX: Hyperliquid vs. Lighter Competition Intensifies

The competition in the perpetual contract DEX (Perp DEX) space is becoming increasingly heated.

In its latest official article, Hyperliquid has positioned its emerging competitor, Lighter, alongside centralized exchanges like Binance, referring to it as a platform utilizing a centralized sequencer. Hyperliquid emphasizes its transparency advantage of being "fully on-chain, operated by a validator network, and with no hidden state."

The community widely interprets this as Hyperliquid declaring "war" on Lighter. The technical differences between the two platforms have also become a focal point of discussion: Hyperliquid focuses on ultimate on-chain transparency, while Lighter emphasizes achieving "verifiable execution" through zero-knowledge proofs to provide users with a Central Limit Order Book (CLOB)-like trading experience.

This battle over the future direction of decentralized derivatives exchanges is expected to peak in 2026.

Meanwhile, discussions about Lighter's trading fees have surfaced. Some users have pointed out that Lighter charged as much as 81 basis points (0.81%) for a $2 million USD/JPY forex trade, far exceeding the near-zero spreads of traditional forex brokers.

Some argue that Lighter does not follow a B-book model that bets against market makers, instead anchoring its prices to the TradFi market, and the high fees may be related to the current liquidity or market maker balance incentives. Providing a more competitive spread for real-world assets (RWA) in the highly volatile crypto market is a key issue Lighter will need to address in the future.

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