Hyperliquid's native token HYPE continues facing downward pressure but mounting evidence of large-holder accumulation and aggressive protocol buybacks suggest a potential reversal may be brewing near the critical $36 support level, according to fresh on-chain data and market analysis.
Trading at $37.63 at press time Monday, HYPE has declined 9% over the past 24 hours and sits near the lower boundary of its seven-day range. The token has shed 20% over the past week and 25% throughout the month, now trading 36% below its all-time high of $59.30 set on September 18.
Despite the bearish price action, daily trading volume surged 59% to $796.7 million, signaling heightened market activity. Derivatives volume climbed 38.7% to $2.81 billion, while open interest dropped 7.7% to $1.59 billion—a pattern that typically indicates traders closing or rotating positions rather than building new leveraged long exposure, often a precursor to either consolidation or increased volatility.
Whale Accumulation Intensifies Despite Price Weakness
Fresh on-chain analysis from CryptoQuant contributor EgyHash, published November 3, reveals clear signs that large holders are accumulating HYPE tokens during the current pullback. Spot volume growth combined with rising average order sizes point to classic accumulation behavior by institutional-sized accounts and high-net-worth traders.
Futures market data mirrors this trend, with average order sizes expanding significantly since mid-October. This synchronized whale activity across both spot and derivatives markets typically reflects mounting confidence among professional traders that a significant price movement could materialize in the near term.
"Whale activities have significantly amplified HYPE order sizes," according to market data from CryptoQuant. "Spot market whales capitalized on temporary price dips to accumulate more tokens, while futures traders exhibited clear directional bias, with over 70% of positions longing HYPE."
Such positioning by sophisticated market participants often marks the early stages of a rebound, especially when it occurs during periods of heightened volatility and retail capitulation.
Hyperliquid's Aggressive Buyback Program Provides Support
Adding fundamental strength to the bullish thesis, Hyperliquid's ecosystem channels a substantial portion of protocol fees into systematic token buybacks through its Assistance Fund. The fund has repurchased more than $340 million worth of HYPE so far in 2025 and continues buying regularly, with monthly buybacks averaging approximately $65 million.
According to CoinGecko research, Hyperliquid has emerged as the dominant force in 2025's token buyback trend, accounting for 46% of the $1.4 billion spent across all cryptocurrency projects this year. The protocol allocates 97% of trading fees toward purchasing HYPE from the open market, creating consistent buy pressure that directly correlates with platform usage.
The Assistance Fund has accumulated more than 21.36 million HYPE tokens, representing 2.1% of total supply, with the fund's holdings now valued at approximately $1.3 billion. Based on current trading volumes and an estimated daily revenue of $5 million, market projections suggest the fund could theoretically repurchase up to 13% of total supply annually.
Planned delegated programs and ongoing infrastructure improvements could add meaningful additional demand by year's end, potentially offsetting selling pressure and supporting price stabilization near current levels.
Major Exchange Listings Expand HYPE Accessibility
Additional tailwinds for the token are being generated by infrastructure improvements and high-profile exchange listings that significantly expand HYPE's accessibility to mainstream traders. Leading cryptocurrency exchanges Bybit, OKX, and Robinhood Europe have all recently added HYPE trading pairs, dramatically increasing the token's liquidity and exposure.
OKX officially listed HYPE for spot trading on November 3, with deposits opening at 7:30 AM UTC and trading commencing at 2:30 PM UTC. The exchange postponed the initial listing by one day to ensure stable trading conditions, demonstrating a cautious approach to integrating the high-volume token.
Robinhood's October listing marked a particularly significant milestone, as the commission-free trading platform made HYPE available to its millions of U.S. retail customers before major competitors Binance and Coinbase. The listing triggered a 12% price surge and substantial increases in open interest across Binance, OKX, and Bybit futures markets.
Additionally, Bitget Wallet's HyperEVM bridge has attracted USD Coin (USDC) liquidity worth over $4.5 billion, further strengthening the ecosystem's capital base and facilitating easier onramps for institutional participants.
Institutional Interest Grows with ETF Filings
Perhaps most significantly for long-term price dynamics, multiple asset managers have filed for Hyperliquid-based exchange-traded funds, signaling growing institutional appetite for regulated exposure to the protocol. Swiss asset manager 21Shares filed an S-1 registration with the SEC on October 29 for a spot HYPE ETF, while also submitting a separate application for a 2x leveraged HYPE ETF that would deliver double the daily returns of the Hyperliquid Index.
The filings name Coinbase Custody Trust Company and BitGo Trust Company as custodians, two of the most established digital asset custodians in the United States known for providing secure storage and compliance services.
Bitwise also filed for a similar Hyperliquid ETF in September, with the product designed to hold HYPE tokens directly and include in-kind creation and redemption features. VanEck has indicated plans to launch both a U.S. spot staking HYPE ETF and a parallel European ETP, potentially integrating staking yields and buyback mechanisms tied to fund performance.
Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas characterized the 21Shares leveraged filing as "so niche it might just win," comparing the strategic positioning to early booms in smart beta and currency-hedged products that eventually attracted billions in assets.
These moves, combined with Hyperliquid's strong fundamentals and growing ecosystem, have drawn significant institutional attention that could amplify any rebound narrative if bullish momentum returns.
Technical Analysis Suggests Critical Juncture
From a technical perspective, HYPE finds itself at a pivotal decision point. The token is currently trading below the middle Bollinger Band on the daily chart, positioned around $41, with price action hugging the lower band—a configuration that typically indicates cooling momentum and potential oversold conditions.
The MACD indicator remains in negative territory, and most momentum oscillators are displaying bearish signals. The Relative Strength Index sits at 40, suggesting slight weakness but not yet reaching oversold levels that would typically trigger strong bounce reactions.
Most critically, short- and mid-term moving averages (10-100 day) remain above current price and are trending lower, confirming the short-term bearish structure that has dominated recent price action.
However, the $36-$38 range represents crucial support as it aligns approximately with the 200-day estimated moving average—a level that has historically provided strong support during previous corrections in April and July. A daily close below $36 could invite deeper selling toward $32, where previous buyers emerged during the token's earlier accumulation phases.
Conversely, if bulls successfully defend this level, resistance is located between $41 and $42. A decisive breakout above that area could catalyze renewed momentum, potentially targeting $49 and even $55 if whale accumulation continues and broader market conditions improve.
Analysts note that the current consolidation between $36 and $42 represents a potential accumulation zone where smart money may be positioning ahead of the next major move. The combination of technical support, fundamental buyback pressure, and growing whale interest creates a setup that many traders view as asymmetrically favorable for patient long positions.
Final thoughts
Beyond price action, Hyperliquid's underlying protocol metrics continue showing robust growth. The platform recorded $114 million in revenue during October alone, equivalent to $1.37 billion annualized. These figures position Hyperliquid among the most profitable and operationally efficient projects in the cryptocurrency space, with revenue frequently surpassing major Layer 1 blockchains including Ethereum and Solana.
Open interest on Hyperliquid's DEX has rebounded to $9.4 billion, with Bitcoin representing $3.3 billion of that total. This substantial liquidity influx strengthens HYPE's governance function and demonstrates sustained user engagement despite broader market weakness.
The platform's October 13 HIP-3 mainnet upgrade introduced permissionless perpetual markets, allowing anyone who stakes 500,000 HYPE to create new trading pairs. In less than two weeks following launch, users locked over 1 million HYPE and drove $180 million in additional daily volume, showcasing the upgrade's immediate impact on platform activity.
As Hyperliquid navigates current market headwinds, the convergence of whale accumulation, systematic buybacks, major exchange listings, and pending ETF approvals creates a multi-layered support structure that could catalyze a significant rebound if the $36 level holds. However, failure to maintain this critical support could trigger deeper corrective moves before any sustainable recovery materializes.