On-chain sleuth @ai_9684xtpa has identified a cluster of wallets potentially tied to venture capital firm a16z that may now hold a significant amount of Hyperliquid’s HYPE token. The analysis suggests these addresses could be the sixth-largest HYPE holders, and possibly the biggest external holder outside of Hyperliquid’s own ecosystem. However, a16z has not officially confirmed this connection, so the attribution remains speculative.
According to the analyst, the wallets have accumulated roughly 9.18 million HYPE since August 2025, with a current estimated value near $356 million based on an average purchase price of about $38.77. Lookonchain adds that since the start of 2026, the addresses added 4.92 million HYPE, worth around $183 million, and still hold 8.844 million HYPE across dozens of addresses after some transfers to exchanges and liquidity providers.
The whale activity coincides with a strong rally for HYPE, which recently surged about 24% in six days, approaching its all-time high. This uptick is attributed to factors like ETF demand, USDC growth, and increased synthetic market activity. Data from Santiment shows HYPE climbing from $38.32 on May 13 to roughly $47.65, with TradingView indicating strong buying pressure near $48.
Hyperliquid’s ecosystem has also seen a boost from new investment vehicles. Bitwise announced it would allocate 10% of management fees from its BHYP Hyperliquid ETF to buy and hold HYPE on its balance sheet. The fund launched on the NYSE on May 15. Combined with 21Shares’ THYP product, net inflows have surpassed $5.6 million quickly after launch. Hyperliquid now handles approximately $8 billion in daily trading volume and controls over 50% of decentralized perpetual futures open interest.
Bitwise CIO Matt Hougan recently described HYPE as one of crypto’s most mispriced assets, arguing that investors may still view Hyperliquid as merely a fast-growing derivatives exchange rather than a broader trading platform. This perspective adds context to the growing interest from both retail and institutional players.