Frequently Asked Questions

Hyperliquid is the world's largest on-chain perpetual futures exchange, processing over $6B in daily volume. It runs on its own L1 blockchain with sub-second finality and offers 170+ trading pairs with up to 50x leverage. Unlike CEXs, all trades settle on-chain with full transparency. See live market data and ecosystem stats.

Deposit USDC via the Arbitrum bridge at app.hyperliquid.xyz. Minimum deposit is 5 USDC. You can also use third-party bridges like Across Protocol or deBridge for faster transfers from other chains. New users can start with the email wallet feature for simplified onboarding. Check our learn hub for detailed guides.

HyperEVM is Hyperliquid's EVM-compatible execution layer that runs alongside HyperCore (the order book engine). It enables DeFi protocols like lending (HyperLend, Felix), DEXs (HyperSwap, KittenSwap), and liquid staking (Kinetiq, StakedHYPE) to build on top of Hyperliquid's liquidity.

Perpetual trading fees are 0.025% for makers and 0.050% for takers. Spot trading fees vary. There are no gas fees for perp trading on HyperCore — gas is only needed for HyperEVM transactions. Withdrawals cost 1 USDC. View current fees and rates on our funding rates page.

You can stake HYPE natively through the Hyperliquid app (select a validator, ~2.25% APY, 7-day unstaking period) or use liquid staking protocols like Kinetiq (kHYPE), StakedHYPE (stHYPE), or HyperBeat (beHYPE) to earn staking yield while keeping your tokens liquid for DeFi.

HLP (Hyperliquid Liquidity Provider) is the protocol's market-making vault. Users deposit USDC and earn yield from market-making profits across all trading pairs. Historical APY has ranged from 10-17% with occasional spikes during high-volatility events. It requires no active management.

Key yield sources include: HLP vault (10-17% APY), liquid staking via Kinetiq/StakedHYPE (~2-4% + DeFi composability), lending on HyperLend or Morpho, Felix Protocol feUSD minting, and delta-neutral funding rate strategies.

Liquid staking lets you stake HYPE while receiving a liquid token (kHYPE, stHYPE, beHYPE) that represents your staked position. You can use these tokens in DeFi (lending, LPing) while still earning staking rewards. Kinetiq (kHYPE) is the largest with ~$1.7B TVL.

Funding rates are periodic payments between long and short traders that keep perpetual futures prices aligned with spot prices. On Hyperliquid, funding is settled hourly. When the rate is positive, longs pay shorts; when negative, shorts pay longs. The rate is capped at 4% per hour. Track rates in real time on our funding rates dashboard.

Maximum leverage varies by asset — major pairs like BTC and ETH support up to 50x leverage. Smaller-cap assets may have lower limits (20x or less). Leverage is adjusted based on position size and asset liquidity. Browse all pairs on the markets page.

Cross-margin uses your entire account balance as collateral across all positions. This reduces liquidation risk but means a large loss on one position can affect others. Isolated margin, by contrast, limits risk to the margin allocated to each individual position. Learn more in our guides.

Liquidation occurs when your position's margin falls below the maintenance margin requirement. The protocol's backstop liquidator takes over the position. Using lower leverage and cross-margin reduces liquidation risk. The HLP vault absorbs some liquidation risk as a backstop.

HyperCore is Hyperliquid's native execution layer optimized for the order book and perp trading — it's fast and gas-free. HyperEVM is the Ethereum-compatible layer that runs smart contracts for DeFi protocols. Both layers share the same state, so HyperEVM apps can interact with HyperCore liquidity. Explore projects by layer: HyperCore, HyperEVM.

The ecosystem includes 170+ projects spanning DEXs, lending protocols, liquid staking, yield vaults, bridges, analytics tools, trading bots, and NFT platforms. perp.wiki tracks and profiles the major protocols with detailed dossiers and live market data.

HIP-1 (Hyperliquid Improvement Proposal 1) is the token standard on Hyperliquid, similar to ERC-20 on Ethereum. HIP-1 tokens are native to HyperCore and can be traded on Hyperliquid's spot order book with the same speed and efficiency as the perp exchange. See HIP-3 projects for tokens using automated liquidity.

HIP-3 enables automated liquidity for HIP-1 tokens through a protocol-level market-making mechanism. Instead of requiring external market makers, HIP-3 provides constant liquidity with deterministic pricing, making it easier for new tokens to have deep order books from launch. Browse HIP-3 tokens.

Hyperliquid operates a proof-of-stake consensus with validators, but the Hyper Foundation currently controls ~81% of staked HYPE. Node software is closed-source. The protocol is progressively decentralizing, but it's important to understand the current centralization tradeoffs.

In March 2025, a trader attempted to exploit Hyperliquid's liquidation mechanism using the JELLYJELLY token, potentially exposing the HLP vault to $12M+ in losses. The Hyperliquid team intervened by delisting the token and settling positions. This raised concerns about centralized intervention but also demonstrated the team's ability to protect user funds.

Audit status varies by protocol. Major protocols like Kinetiq, HyperLend, and Felix Protocol have undergone third-party audits. However, many newer HyperEVM protocols are unaudited. perp.wiki's project dossiers include audit status where available. Always verify audit reports independently before depositing funds.

The official method is depositing USDC via the Arbitrum bridge at app.hyperliquid.xyz. Third-party bridges (Across Protocol, deBridge, LayerZero) offer faster or multi-chain options. Always verify bridge URLs, start with small test transactions, and use established bridges with audit histories.