CoinMarketCap’s Q2 2025 report has painted a different picture of the crypto market, with user activity now drifting away from hype-driven assets and into infrastructure-led projects.
Meme coins and AI tokens are slowly fading from the spotlight. Instead, traders are turning their attention to stablecoins, real-world assets, and decentralised platforms that show sustained performance.
Among them, Hyperliquid has emerged as a key player, reaching a staggering $1.57 trillion in annual trading volume and outperforming its closest rivals by a wide margin. The rise of HYPE, its native token, further cements its growing influence in DeFi.
Market Report Highlights the Growing Role of Hyperliquid in Q2
The Q2 2025 report by CoinMarketCap reflects a changing crypto environment. Trading momentum has shifted from speculative tokens to infrastructure and financial primitives.
Stablecoins, in particular, have seen significant inflows, with their combined market cap hitting $247.9 billion. USD1 led the pack, surging from $57 million to $2.2 billion within three months, following its Binance listing and a $2 billion injection from MGX.
Tether (USDT) remained dominant, with a $14.1 billion increase, while USDC rose by $1.3 billion on the back of renewed investor trust after Circle’s IPO. PayPal’s PYUSD also grew steadily, inching closer to the $1 billion mark with 28.5% quarterly growth.
Real-world assets have followed a similar pattern. By the end of June, private credit and U.S. Treasury debt made up over 88% of tokenised asset value. Roughly $10 billion in private credit has flowed primarily through Figure’s use of the Provenance blockchain.
Meanwhile, tokenised treasuries stood at $7.38 billion, with BlackRock’s BUIDL fund securing nearly 39% of that segment. This trend suggests that on-chain financial strategies are leaning heavily toward more traditional instruments, now in token form.
While these shifts are significant, Hyperliquid’s performance is one of the standout features of the report.
The decentralised derivatives platform processed $648 billion in Q2 alone and $1.57 trillion over the past 12 months. It now commands over 60% of the perpetual DEX market, far ahead of its nearest competitor.
This growth is backed by several factors. The HYPE airdrop and fair point system re-engaged users in late 2024, while the platform’s liquidity depth and consistent arbitrage opportunities attracted sophisticated traders. High-profile individuals like James Wynn also contributed to user growth.
Moreover, its user-friendly interface and reliable API helped retain long-term users and encouraged daily trading activity.
Another factor supporting Hyperliquid’s dominance is its transparent buyback and burn model for the HYPE token.
By reducing token supply in line with trading volume, the platform has created a feedback loop between activity and token value, which has played a role in sustaining community interest and trust.
HYPE Token Climbs as Futures Activity Reaches Record Highs
While Hyperliquid’s volume growth is impressive, its native token HYPE has also seen a sharp rise in both price and usage. As of mid-July, HYPE had entered the top 12 cryptocurrencies by market cap.
Analysts note that the token is now on track to potentially enter the top 10 if current volumes continue. This increase in valuation has come alongside a major milestone in derivatives trading, open interest on Hyperliquid has exceeded $10.6 billion, its highest figure so far.
This surge in open interest reflects the growing number of traders placing leveraged bets on the platform. The spike has brought in a wave of fresh users and suggests stronger liquidity conditions, which are crucial for efficient price discovery.
More users taking large positions can result in sharper price movements, particularly during periods of volatility.
Yet, it also means that the platform has reached a point where its markets can absorb such flows without creating dislocations, something that few decentralised exchanges have achieved.
Data from Coinalyze shows that while centralised exchanges like Binance and Bybit are contributing significant volumes, Binance alone with $393 million in Hyperliquid-linked open interest, the majority of trading still remains on-chain through Hyperliquid itself.
This points to the platform’s ability to stand on its own rather than relying on CEX spillovers for liquidity. A closer look at trading trends suggests that the ecosystem has matured beyond its early adopter phase.
With higher capital inflow and repeat participation from advanced users, Hyperliquid now caters to both institutional and retail traders seeking perpetual futures with better fee structures and faster execution.
The token’s value is also being supported by the same mechanisms that made the platform successful: consistent trading incentives, an active development team, and a well-designed liquidity framework.
The alignment between the platform’s growth and the token’s performance suggests a sustainable model, rather than a temporary rally driven by hype.
As traders become more selective and look for real utility, tokens like HYPE that are directly tied to platform performance are gaining an edge.
Conclusion
The latest data confirms that the crypto market is gradually moving away from speculation and toward platforms with real usage and dependable infrastructure.
Hyperliquid’s rise is not just the story of a single project but reflects broader trends in the space. As more capital flows into RWAs, stablecoins, and decentralised trading platforms, the market seems to be entering a phase where fundamentals carry more weight than narratives.
With its record-breaking trading volume and the growing appeal of HYPE, Hyperliquid has positioned itself as a serious player in a maturing DeFi landscape.