What happened?
An early Hyperliquid whale sold 4.99 million HYPE tokens for about $228.8 million, booking roughly $148.6 million in profit after nine months of holding. That sale is part of a broader wave of large holders offloading HYPE as traders rotate capital into rival Aster DEX. The selloff is being amplified by an upcoming vesting event—237.8 million HYPE starts unlocking on November 29—which is increasing immediate selling pressure.
Who does this affect?
This mainly affects HYPE holders and early investors who face higher short-term price volatility as big positions are liquidated. It also pressures Hyperliquid’s team and founders since developers with large vesting amounts may feel compelled to realize gains, while current buybacks only cover a small slice of the potential supply. Meanwhile Aster DEX users and supporters benefit from inflows as trading volume and fees shift away from Hyperliquid.
Why does this matter?
The market impact is material because the November unlock could introduce roughly $10.7 billion of token value into circulation, creating an estimated $446 million a month of selling pressure at current prices. With buybacks absorbing only about 17% of that and growing short interest plus Aster stealing market share, HYPE faces meaningful downside risk and higher volatility into Q4. More broadly, the episode shows how whale moves and token unlock schedules can rapidly reshape exchange market share and trader flows across the crypto ecosystem.