Bitwise's spot Hyperliquid ETF (BHYP) has pulled in $40 million in assets within just eight trading days of its launch on the New York Stock Exchange. The fund, which started trading on May 15, 2026, saw $12 million of volume in the first 90 minutes of Tuesday's session alone, according to Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley. That pushed assets under management from $30.5 million after five sessions to the $40 million mark.
Staking and transparency features
BHYP is the first HYPE ETF to be natively staked, a feature that sets it apart from rivals. Bitwise Onchain Solutions handles the staking, and the firm publishes fund wallet addresses so anyone can verify holdings. The issuer also uses 10% of annual management fees to buy HYPE for its own balance sheet, with a minimum 12-month holding period. That structure, the company says, aligns the fund's interests with long-term holders.
Onchain data from Arkham showed that Bitwise ETF clients bought $35.9 million of HYPE in the week leading up to May 26 — an 18-fold jump from the fund's first week. Lookonchain flagged a fresh $10.11 million purchase of 162,367 HYPE within a two-hour window, bringing Bitwise's reported holdings to 723,361 HYPE as of May 21.
Whale activity and market reaction
The HYPE token itself has rallied alongside the ETF's debut. It hit an intraday high of $64.44 on Tuesday and settled near $61.82, up 26% over the past seven days. On May 26, a whale opened a 10x leveraged long on 142,754 HYPE — worth $9.1 million — on Hyperliquid, with a liquidation price of $41.93. The same wallet (0x3ed4) had opened an $8.24 million leveraged long on Zcash the previous day.
The whale's position suggests confidence that HYPE will hold above $42, but a sharp drop could trigger a $9.1 million liquidation. So far, the token's climb has kept that risk at bay.
Competitive landscape heats up
Bitwise isn't the only firm chasing the HYPE ETF market. 21Shares listed its spot Hyperliquid ETF (THYP) on Nasdaq a few days before BHYP hit the NYSE. Grayscale has filed for a HYPE ETF, and VanEck has confirmed plans for both the US and Europe. BHYP’s edge, at least for now, is its staking and transparency features — plus a head start on the NYSE floor.
Still, the race is early. With Grayscale's application pending and VanEck's global rollout on the horizon, BHYP will need to maintain its lead in inflows. The first-week numbers are strong — $26.9 million in net inflows and $9.2 million in average daily volume — but the real test will come when competition arrives later this year.
