In a significant development for the cryptocurrency exchange landscape, the decentralized exchange Hyperliquid has achieved a notable liquidity milestone, overtaking industry giant Binance in top-of-book Bitcoin (BTC) depth. According to data shared by Blockworks researcher Shaunda Devens, Hyperliquid now holds $3.1 million in resting BTC order book depth at ±1 basis point (bps) from the mid-price. This surpasses Binance's $2.3 million at the same tightest trading spread, a metric crucial for traders seeking minimal slippage.
This achievement is not limited to Bitcoin. Hyperliquid's HIP-3 silver market has also outpaced Binance, showing $33,000 in resting depth compared to Binance's $24,000 at the ±1bps level. This positions Hyperliquid as a serious contender for high-frequency and institutional trading, signaling a potential shift in exchange dominance based on liquidity quality.
In a separate but related strategic move, Hyperliquid has announced a dramatic reduction in its monthly team token unlocks. According to a company Discord announcement, only 140,000 HYPE tokens are scheduled for release in February 2026. This represents a nearly 90% reduction from the 1.2 million HYPE tokens unlocked in January. The move is widely interpreted as an effort to manage supply overhang, ease market pressure, and stabilize the token's price by reducing potential sell-side volatility from team allocations.
Despite this supply-side intervention, the HYPE token's price showed a muted reaction, trading down approximately 3% at $32.93 at the time of the report. The combined developments of superior liquidity metrics and a conservative token emission strategy highlight Hyperliquid's focus on building a robust and stable trading environment to attract both retail and institutional participants.
