- Hyperliquid price dips 1.2% amid profit-taking and Aster DEX competition.
- Upcoming HYPE token unlocks worth $11.9B raise short-term supply concerns.
- Rising open interest and whale accumulation point to bullish momentum.
Hyperliquid experienced a brief pullback after a sharp intraday rally, sliding about 1.2% to trade near $46.57. Despite the minor retracement, the HYPE token is still up roughly 19.5% over the past week, reflecting sustained investor interest and confidence in the project’s longer-term prospects.
The recent retracement follows an extended rally and appears driven by a mix of profit-taking, technical resistance and increasing competition within the decentralized derivatives sector.
Competition and profit-taking weigh on sentiment
After a strong advance last week, Hyperliquid faced selling pressure around the 38.2% Fibonacci retracement level at $49.36. That failed breakout encouraged traders to realize gains, producing a short-lived correction.
Technical indicators on shorter timeframes point to cooling momentum: the MACD histogram on the 4-hour chart has turned negative, and the RSI retreated from overbought levels near 69.89, suggesting the market required a pause after the recent 19% weekly gain.
Part of the sell-off has also been driven by intensifying rivalry from the newly launched, Binance-backed Aster DEX. Since its September 17 debut, Aster posted extremely high volumes—processing $20.8 billion on day one compared with Hyperliquid’s $9.7 billion—drawing liquidity across the decentralized perpetuals market and briefly challenging Hyperliquid’s dominance.
Nevertheless, Hyperliquid still holds a leading market position. With a market capitalization near $12.74 billion and total value locked (TVL) around $4.85 billion, it ranks among the largest decentralized derivatives platforms. Still, traders remain vigilant as the project navigates short-term pressure from external competitors and upcoming supply events.
HYPE token unlock concerns
A more immediate headwind is a looming token unlock schedule starting November 29. Roughly 237.8 million HYPE tokens—about 24% of the total supply—will begin vesting over a 24-month period. At current prices, that translates to nearly $500 million of potential monthly sell pressure, partially offset by about $65 million in monthly buybacks from the project treasury.
The net effect could be an additional monthly supply of roughly $410 million, raising the possibility of heightened volatility as markets absorb the new tokens. That said, the project’s large treasury—tied to a $1 billion filing related to the Sonnet Bio and Rorschach merger—provides the team with tools to manage liquidity and support the market through buybacks or ecosystem initiatives, which could mitigate some dilution concerns.
On-chain signals point to bullish undercurrents
While short-term traders weigh resistance levels and token unlock risks, derivatives and on-chain metrics paint a more positive picture. Futures open interest (OI) for HYPE climbed from $1.27 billion last Wednesday to $1.97 billion on Monday, reaching its highest levels since early October. Rising OI typically indicates fresh capital entering the market and can signal increased bullish conviction.
CryptoQuant data also shows large investors increasing exposure, with whale buy orders dominating both spot and futures markets. This accumulation by institutional and high-net-worth participants suggests expectations of further upside.
Network metrics support this optimistic view. Artemis Terminal reports Hyperliquid’s 24-hour on-chain fee revenue reached $2 million, outpacing peers such as edgeX and BNB Chain. Elevated fees often reflect strong trading activity and liquidity, indicating healthy user engagement even while price action consolidates.
Key technical levels to watch
From a technical perspective, HYPE has demonstrated resilience after breaking above a descending trendline and reclaiming the 50-day exponential moving average (EMA) at $43.54. The token held that EMA as support over the weekend before pushing back above $48.57.
A daily close above the next resistance at $51.15 would likely open the path toward the previous record high of $59.46, last seen on September 18. Conversely, losing the $43.54 EMA as support could expose HYPE to a deeper correction toward the $41.60 support zone.
In summary, Hyperliquid’s short-term dip reflects normal profit-taking and competitive pressures, but rising open interest, whale accumulation and robust network activity point to underlying bullish momentum. Market participants will monitor upcoming token unlocks and treasury actions closely, as these factors will be crucial in determining near-term volatility and the sustainability of the recent rally.