Hyperliquid’s Founder Defies VC Giants: A Stand for True Decentralization in 2025

Decentralization or bust—Hyperliquid's founder just flipped the script on traditional crypto funding.

No VC strings attached: How one protocol is rewriting the rulebook.

While Wall Street scrambles to slap 'Web3' on legacy products, Hyperliquid cuts through the noise with a radical premise: real decentralization means no backroom deals. The founder's rejection of venture capital isn't just principled—it's a middle finger to the 'decentralized theater' plaguing crypto.

Finance jab of the day: VCs still think they can buy decentralization like a bored ape JPEG.

This move sets a dangerous precedent—for anyone still pretending that captive chains and centralized 'DeFi' are anything but cash grabs. Hyperliquid's gamble? That traders care more about sovereignty than spreadsheet-happy investors.

Hyperliquid founder Jeff shared insights on October 22 during an interview with TBPN, addressing the biggest challenge his team faces: maintaining the balance between decentralization ideals and development pace.

According to Jeff, the project deliberately avoids venture capital (VC) backing, opting instead for slower progress to uphold the integrity of its decentralized mission.

Hyperliquid Founder Talks About the Biggest Challenge in the Project's Development

Hyperliquid founder Jeff said in an interview with TBPN on October 22 that the biggest challenge in the project's development is finding a balance between the ideal of decentralization and the… pic.twitter.com/w7cOI5W0zf

This stance has shaped Hyperliquid’s identity as a network that rejects external capital influence from day one. The founder explained that while VC investment can accelerate development, it often introduces biases that conflict with the vision of a neutral financial protocol.

By maintaining independence, the team hopes to establish a system where every participant stands on equal ground, similar to the philosophy that guided Bitcoin’s early growth.

Jeff compared Hyperliquid’s journey to that of Bitcoin’s origin, emphasizing that neutrality cannot exist when early investors hold influence over the network’s direction. This belief has become central to Hyperliquid’s strategy, even if it means taking a slower, more cautious route toward achieving full decentralization.

Rejecting Venture Capital as a Philosophical Stand

Not pursuing venture capital funding is more than just a technical choice; it’s a philosophical one, Jeff explained. He pointed out that a lot of blockchain-related startups value scaling up rapidly and increasing valuation over anything else, including decentralization.

Hyperliquid, on the other hand, is working towards building “a neutral financial network with no capital, which means that no one can claim any control over it.

This applies to all levels of development for this particular project. It implies that this particular initiative is dependent to a great extent on community growth instead of relying on outside investment.

Neutrality is more than a design consideration for Jeff and his team; it’s a bedrock of trust that might hold up a long-term vision for Hyperliquid. This is a situation that deliberately refuses to fall back on the quick fixes made possible by VC investment and is instead trying to build something that can stand on its own feet.

Neutrality as the Core of Hyperliquid’s Vision

Although this strategy might be considered bold in a competitive crypto market, Jeff believes this is necessary for credibility. He agreed that without VC funding, this means slower timelines and limited resources, but this allows Hyperliquid to stick to its founding tenets.

He explained how a proposed ideal or value, such as neutrality, can never be regained if it is ever sacrificed. “The history of how a protocol starts will forever inform its reputation. Rather than acting hastily, this team is choosing to keep all actions in line with this ideal model for decentralization,” she explained.

Hyperliquid’s progress might be slightly slower, but in Jeff’s opinion, this is the only way for a system to have a character similar to that of Bitcoin in terms of neutrality and trust.