HIP-3 Dominates with 40% of Hyperliquid Volume as Crypto Markets Slow
Hyperliquid's third-party market, HIP-3, now accounts for up to 40% of the platform's total trading volume, positioning itself as a critical buffer against broader cryptocurrency market slowdowns. The market has expanded its asset selection to include 24/7 stock and commodity contracts, driving its share of Hyperliquid's total open interest to 21%. This surge in activity, alongside Hyperliquid posting over $19B in daily volume—levels not seen since November 2024—suggests a potential mass migration from other perpetual DEXs as Hyperliquid cements its lead in popularity and liquidity.
Brent takes over HIP-3 trading
The initial hype around oil trading elevated the CL perpetual futures by Trade[.]XYZ, representing West Texas Intermediate. Now, the most active trading has switched to the Brent benchmark, representing the actual Middle East oil grade.
Brent open interest rose to $286M, while WTI sank to $215M after a series of liquidations and closed positions. Brent volumes rose to $955M, while the WTI futures still retained their higher activity at $1.25B.
Interest in Brent increased after the energy commodity rallied near a five-year peak, rising above $111. Brent rose from a baseline of around $70 at the end of February, and recently retreated to around $102 per barrel.
While the dynamics of oil markets are specialized, crypto traders mostly rely on the strong directional moves based on the news of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. As a result, HIP-3 now trades more gold, silver, and oil futures compared to crypto assets, betting on a much clearer reaction to news.
On Hyperliquid, oil traded at the $89 range as of March 24, based on its own oracle data. On-chain trading may differ from traditional markets, leading to a specific set of liquidations and directional trades.
HIP-3 creates a new trading category
The advantage of HIP-3 is that it does not represent a digital asset. The oil is not tokenized or linked to any real commodities or futures. Instead, the market is built on perpetual futures, allowing traders to set their expectations on upcoming moves, with no constraints on time horizon.
The oil markets on Hyperliquid are also agile, immediately reacting to the potential of oil shocks. Whales are also taking risky bets by shorting oil during any signs of a downturn, as the markets attempt to return to normal. Some whales were also liquidated on some positions, but managed to realize profits and withdraw from Hyperliquid.
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