The regulatory status of decentralized perpetuals exchange Hyperliquid came under fresh scrutiny after the Monetary Authority of Singapore said it was unaware of the platform being regulated in any major jurisdiction and questioned its Singapore status. The Financial Times reported that MAS does not view Hyperliquid as based in Singapore, citing its decentralized nature, and therefore sees it as outside MAS jurisdiction. Hyperliquid Labs, however, confirmed to the FT that Singapore is its registered headquarters, where co-founder Jeff Yan and a team of about 11 people relocated in 2024. Corporate documents and recent job advertisements also referenced a Singapore office.
MAS has warned investors about Hyperliquid's leveraged perpetual futures, which allow open-ended speculative positions without delivering underlying assets. Consumer advocates describe the products as highly risky because of leverage. Hyperliquid said it has never claimed licensing or authorization from MAS and remains committed to engaging with regulators. MAS added Hyperliquid to its Investor Alert List on June 26, identifying the Hyper Foundation website and trading application, though Hyperliquid emphasized the listing is not a ban, enforcement action, or finding of wrongdoing.
The scrutiny follows Singapore's broader effort to discourage retail crypto speculation after failures including Terraform Labs' $40 billion TerraUSD collapse in 2022. Last year MAS required unlicensed crypto exchanges operating in Singapore to close or move overseas, and in June 2025 set a licensing deadline for overseas token services. Elsewhere, the UK's Financial Conduct Authority has warned that it does not regulate Hyperliquid. In the U.S., President Donald Trump said in August that the CFTC was working toward bringing Hyperliquid into the country compliantly. In September Kraken parent Payward announced plans for regulated Hyperliquid perpetual markets using HIP-3 infrastructure, with Bitnomial Exchange and Clearinghouse handling contracts and clearing, and NinjaTrader Clearing carrying customer accounts, subject to regulatory approval.
