The Securities and Exchange Commission is preparing an “innovation exemption” for tokenized US stocks, a move that could reshape the market – where Ondo Finance already controls 60% of the sector. The exemption is expected soon, according to reports that sent ONDO up 10% on May 21 before settling back.
Ondo’s token, ONDO, traded at $0.41 on May 22, down 1.73% on the day but still above a key floor. The token has been sliding inside a falling channel since a local high of $0.48 on May 9, though volume has been rising since May 14 – a sign that accumulation may be underway.
Whale activity and technical levels
Whales have been busy. Earlier in May, addresses holding between 1 million and 10 million ONDO grew their stash from 555.38 million to 594.05 million tokens – a 38.67 million token addition. Just before the weekend, the broader whale cohort boosted holdings from 7.90 billion to 7.93 billion tokens in a matter of hours.
Technically, ONDO trades above all four exponential moving averages, with the 200-day EMA at $0.40 acting as immediate support. Key resistance sits at $0.42, with upside targets at $0.45 and $0.48. The 0.618 Fibonacci level is at $0.43. But the bullish thesis fails below $0.40, exposing $0.36 and then $0.33.
Hyperliquid hits new highs, ETFs draw record inflows
Hyperliquid (HYPE) reached a new all-time high near $62.73 on May 22, pushing its market cap above $15 billion. By the end of the day the token had eased to $57.68. The chart shows a bull flag after the ATH, with the flagpole measuring a 63.62% rally from April’s low of $38.21. The Chaikin Money Flow stands at 0.06 and has been trending higher since April 15 – money is still flowing in.
Spot HYPE ETFs from Bitwise and 21Shares recorded a record $25.5 million in net inflows on May 21. That same day, a wallet linked to venture firm a16z accumulated 3.17 million HYPE tokens worth $148.5 million since April 14, buying at an average price of $46.8. The wallet currently sits on an unrealized profit of about $33 million.
The bull flag pattern is valid as long as HYPE stays above $56.93. A drop below $53.35 weakens the structure, and $50.46 would invalidate it entirely. On the upside, a break above $58.58 then the ATH of $62.73 opens the 1.618 Fibonacci extension target at $95.71.
Trader Garrett Jin places big short on Zcash, buys more HYPE
Trader Garrett Jin put limit orders to short $36 million worth of Zcash (ZEC) on May 22, signaling bearish sentiment on the privacy coin. ZEC was trading at $656.65 that day, after a 20% weekly rally. Jin didn’t stop there – he also placed orders to buy more HYPE.
The conflicting bets suggest Jin sees Hyperliquid as having more room to run while Zcash’s recent surge may be overdone. No other traders were named in the data.
The SEC’s exemption is still in draft form, and the exact timeline hasn’t been set. For Ondo, the next few days will be critical: the token needs to hold $0.40 to keep its runway open toward $0.48. For Hyperliquid, the bull flag will either break upward or collapse if HYPE slips below $56.93. The ETF inflows and a16z’s position suggest institutional appetite isn’t fading yet.
