Hyperliquid Revolutionizes Crypto Perpetuals in DeFi's Ecosystem

The concept that liquidity breeds liquidity is particularly relevant in the context of Hyperliquid, a decentralized exchange that has gained popularity among traders, especially those interested in perpetual futures or 'perps.' These blockchain-based derivatives contracts allow users to speculate on asset prices with leverage and no expiration date. Founded by Harvard classmates Jeff Yan and the pseudonymous developer iliensinc, Hyperliquid launched in 2023 and has capitalized on the volume and depth of its order book. It offers firms a concept akin to composability, where permissionless smart contracts can be combined like financial building blocks, enabling the creation of new tokenized products. Hyperliquid's Ethereum-compatible HyperEVM is directly connected to its high-speed, homegrown HyperCore blockchain, allowing other applications to utilize the platform's shared liquidity without fragmenting it. This means that applications such as wallets or other exchanges can integrate with Hyperliquid, using it as a backend to offer perps trading and other services. As more developers integrate Hyperliquid, the platform's liquidity deepens, the variety of assets expands, and network effects compound. Currently, hundreds of developers, including prominent names like MetaMask, Phantom wallet, and the South African exchange VALR, are utilizing Hyperliquid's system of 'builder codes.' These builders have generated approximately $90 million in revenue, according to Flowscan. Hyunsu Jung, CEO of Hyperion DeFi, praises the platform, stating, 'Hyperliquid is not just a perpetuals exchange; it's more like the AWS for finance.' Jung highlights that the platform provides liquidity and execution, allowing builders to focus on delivering a great user experience. The concept of builder codes enables integrators to charge fees on the notional size of their users' trades without having to develop the backend or maintain liquidity. Sterling Barnett, business development lead at Hyperliquid Labs, notes that integrators can offer their users best-in-class on-chain liquidity and institutional-grade infrastructure while earning fees on every trade. For applications like MetaMask, integrating with Hyperliquid's EVM module is a logical choice. MetaMask has provided its users with self-custodial access to perps directly from the wallet since October 2025. Being a wallet offers the advantage of streamlined fund transfers, allowing users to trade directly with the tokens they already hold. Matthieu Saint Olive, Staff Product Manager at MetaMask, highlights that Hyperliquid handles matching, the oracle, and the margin engine, while MetaMask focuses on delivering a great user experience. Saint Olive notes that MetaMask is seeing growth beyond crypto, with commodities and equities becoming increasingly popular. 'Real-world-asset markets have gone from a small slice of perp volume at the start of 2026 to roughly a quarter of it today,' he said. In terms of fees, MetaMask charges a flat 0.1% builder fee, with no hidden spread and full transparency. The South African exchange VALR, one of the largest exchanges in Africa, has also opted to use Hyperliquid's perps order book for its liquidity requirements. According to CEO and co-founder Farzam Ehsani, despite building all the infrastructure in-house, including risk and liquidation engines, the team struggled to achieve sufficient volume and liquidity for perpetual futures. Ehsani notes that Hyperliquid's vast volume and market participants from around the world made it an attractive option for VALR. Looking ahead, as major players like Robinhood, Coinbase, and Intercontinental Exchange enter the perps market, opportunities for cross-venue arbitrage will emerge, according to Jung of Hyperion.