Matt Maximo, senior digital asset analyst at VanEck, noted that Hyperliquid has become the firm’s broader strategy.
VanEck is preparing to file with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for a spot ETF tied to the Hyperliquid token HYPE. Company executives revealed that the ETF fund will incorporate stacking features.
The firm aims to give retail and institutional investors regulated exposure to HYPE while sharing staking rewards. VanEck is also reportedly pursuing two Hyperliquid ETFs in the EU region, parallel to the U.S., due to the region’s less stringent regulatory framework.
The latest filing follows Hyperliquid’s increased trading momentum in the crypto landscape. It has gained 20.7% in the past week and is now trading at $54.45, with a 0.5% drop in the past 24 hours. According to CoinMarketCap data, HYPE’s 24-hour trading volume is $543.4 million, up 54.76%, with a market cap of $18.7 billion. It’s also expanding its DeFi footprint, with $54.77 billion in FDV.
Matt Maximo, senior digital asset analyst at VanEck, noted that Hyperliquid has become the firm’s broader strategy for liquid digital asset funds. He also highlighted that the realized growth and rising trading volumes supported the selection for a stacking-focused ETF filing.
VanEck revealed that it will allocate part of the ETF fund to repurchasing HYPE in the open market. Kyle Dacruz, director of digital assets products at VanEck, said that the demand for regulated access to HYPE in the U.S. is on the rise, and an ETF would provide investors with such exposure while allowing participants to gain staking rewards.
HYPE is listed on Bitget, KuCoin, and Bybit. So far, Coinbase has not confirmed its listing, nor has Binance.
VanEck’s interest in crypto-tied financial products began with the filing for Ethereum and Solana ETFs and expanded to other blockchains, including Avalanche and JitoSOL. The fund manager has also offered staking-based exchange-traded notes in Europe since 2024 and filed an S-1 form with the SEC for an Avalanche ETF.
So far, the SEC has not approved any staking ETF, including Ethereum-based staking ETFs. The commission is set to update Regulation S-K and S-X for crypto assets exchange-traded funds, which is expected to shorten the review process for pending applications. The update reduces the timeline from 240 days to around 95 days.
The SEC is currently reviewing other applications from several projects, including Trump-backed Truth Social Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs filed by NYSE Arca, 21Shares, and Bitwise’s Solana Spot ETFs, XRP-focused trust from several firms, and Dogecoin ETF proposals. Considering the volume of applications, VanEck’s filing may not receive immediate approval.
VanEck is also preparing to launch two Hyperliquid ETFs in Europe, citing less restrictive regional rules. The plan follows the example of 21Shares, which listed Hyperliquid ETFs in the region in August. The initiatives act as a template for how the U.S. market may evolve despite the current slow regulatory framework.
Cryptopolitan reported recently that HYPE reached its all-time high near $55, ranking among the top fifteen cryptocurrencies by market cap. The report revealed that the rally was fueled by intense competition among multiple crypto entities, including Paxos, Frax, Agora, and, more recently, Ethena, to secure the rights to launch HYPE’s native stablecoin, USDH. Ethena pledged 95% of revenue to Hyperliquid and to cover the costs of shifting from USDC pairs.
The USDH launch is expected to increase liquidity across the HYPE DeFi exchange, which currently manages more than $5 billion in USDC deposits.
