Hyperliquid Ecosystem Update

Hyperliquids Layer 1 chain is becoming a powerhouse for decentralized derivatives. As the protocol cements its role as the "house of all finance," recent developments are supercharging adoption and innovation. From dramatic fee reductions designed to bootstrap new markets, to the explosive rise of tokenized equity perpetuals on platforms like trade.xyz, and today's milestone Token Generation Event (TGE) for ecosystem darling Kinetiq. Hyperliquid's DeFi ecosystem is evolving at warp speed. Let's break it down.

Hyperliquid's "Growth Mode": 90% Fee Cuts to Fuel Permissionless Innovation

Hyperliquid kicked off a bold expansion phase earlier this month with the launch of HIP-3 "Growth Mode," a game-changing upgrade under Hyperliquid Improvement Proposal 3 (HIP-3). This feature empowers anyone to permissionlessly launch new perpetual (perp) markets on the chain, slashing all-in taker fees by over 90% for qualifying assets (1).

The goal? Bootstrap liquidity in niche or emerging markets. To activate Growth Mode, deployers stake 500,000 HYPE tokens (valued at roughly $20 million at current prices) as a commitment to quality. This stake can be slashed for misconduct, ensuring accountability (2). Markets must also avoid overlapping with existing validator-operated perps, preventing "parasitic" volume and fostering genuine innovation in areas like tokenized real-world assets (RWAs), exotic commodities, or tokenized treasuries.

The impact has been immediate. Since activation around November 19, daily trading volumes on Hyperliquid have spiked. 

The Rise of Equity Perps on trade.xyz: Bringing TradFi to DeFi 24/7

No discussion of Hyperliquid's ecosystem is complete without spotlighting trade.xyz, the HIP-3-powered perp dex that's turning tokenized equities into a multi-billion-dollar phenomenon. Built by the Hyperunit team as the first HIP-3 instance, trade.xyz enables seamless trading of crypto perps and equity perpetuals, all margined in USDC and settled in USD-denominated oracles (3).

Launched less than two months ago, trade.xyz has already shattered records: cumulative trading volume topped $2 billion in just 10 days, with a jaw-dropping $200 million single-day peak during Nvidia's earnings release (4). Equity perps like NVDA (Nvidia), TSLA (Tesla), GOOGL (Alphabet), AMZN (Amazon), and the synthetic Nasdaq index (XYZ100), offering up to 20x leverage around the clock, no market hours. Recent additions like COIN (Coinbase), MSFT (Microsoft) and HOOD (Robinhood) are live with 10x leverage as the team continues to ship more equity offerings tying into hyperliquids liquidity (5).

Volumes for NVDA and TSLA alone hit $26 million in 24 hours recently, with open interest nearing $9 million. Funding rates are a mixed bag, some markets like Felix Protocol's TSLA average a reasonable 4.5%, while others flirt with 197% annualized (0.18% every 8 hours), creating ripe arbitrage ops for savvy farmers (6).

Trade.xyz isn't just volume-chasing; it's bridging TradFi and DeFi. With integrations like Privy for non-crypto natives, trade.xyz is onboarding the masses to on-chain stocks.

Kinetiq's TGE: Liquid Staking Goes Mainstream on Hyperliquid

Capping off an electric week, Kinetiq  Hyperliquid's premier non-custodial liquid staking protocol executed its highly anticipated TGE today. The governance token $KNTQ launched directly on Hyperliquid's spot market, paired exclusively with USDH (the ecosystem's native stablecoin from Native Markets), bypassing the usual claim frenzy for a clean, on-chain debut).

Kinetiq, which hit $2 billion in TVL shortly lets users stake HYPE for kHYPE, a yield-bearing LST usable across DeFi apps like lending on Felix Protocol (7). Its autonomous validator scoring delegates stakes to top performers, maximizing yields while securing the network. Kinetiq represents 3.3% of circulating HYPE staked – a testament to its dominance. The TGE allocated 25% of $KNTQ's supply as genesis distribution: 24% to kPoints holders (from a July-October points program) and 1% to Hypurr holders, with eligibility locked in by November 21 (8).

Kinetiq isn't stopping at staking; its Launch platform (an Exchange-as-a-Service via HIP-3) lets builders deploy modular DEXs, creating yield-bearing "exchange shares" for HYPE holders. As the ecosystem's LST anchor, $KNTQ sets a valuation benchmark for upcoming HIP-3 projects like Ventuals (9).

Looking to Buy $HYPE? 

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‍References

1. Hyperliquid Unveils HIP-3 Growth Mode, Slashing Fees by 90% to Boost New Markets
2. Hyperliquid Slashes Trading Fees by 90 Percent With New HIP-3 Growth Mode
3. HIP-3 Is The Future of Finance: Everything to Know, Hyperliquid Price Prediction December 2025, Will SBET List on HIP-3?
4. 10 Days $2 Billion Trading Volume, Another Hit for Hyperliquid
5. Tokenized Equity Market on Hyperliquid Heats Up
6. Equity Perpetuals
7. Kinetiqs Docs
8. Kinetiq Unveils Launch: The First Exchange-as-a-Service (EaaS) Platform for the Hyperliquid Ecosystem
9. HYPE generates demand, $KNTQ unlocks it

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