HYPE hit a record high of $83.50, becoming the only major asset among 100 assets to rise on the day

Quick understanding of

1. HYPE hit a record high of $83.50 on August 26, the fourth record in six days after peaking on August 21, 22 and 25. Its market value is close to $21 billion and ranks among the top ten.

2. Two catalysts emerged simultaneously: President Trump said the CFTC was developing a compliant U.S. path for Hyperliquid's perpetual contracts; and the agreement activated AQAv2, a mechanism that uses USDC reserve earnings to buy back and destroy HYPE.

3. On the day the token rose, 93 components of the QC100 index fell, and overall market trading volume fell by one-third to US$114 billion, making the rise more unique than a general rise.

Hyperliquid's HYPE hit $83.50 on Wednesday, a record high, and has gained about 35% to 40% in the past week. Since then, the coin has fallen slightly, hovering at just over $80, and remains one of the only two rising assets among the top 20 assets in the day's trading volume.

The background of this rise makes its trend even more prominent: the total market value of cryptocurrencies has dropped to US$2.61 trillion, 93 of the 100 assets tracked have fallen, and 24-hour market volume has dropped to US$114 billion from US$171.56 billion a day ago.

Why did HYPE hit a record high?

During the same trading session, two catalysts appeared at the same time, one of which was structural rather than emotional driving.

The first is regulatory factor. President Trump said the CFTC is developing a compliance path for Hyperliquid's perpetual contracts to enter the U.S. market, and any formal action will appear on the CFTC's own website rather than in relevant comments. Perpetual contracts were previously effectively unavailable to retail traders in the United States, so a path to compliance would open up markets that were previously completely inaccessible to the agreement. The news pushed HYPE from about $66 to above $70, before extending its gains this week.

The second is the mechanism factor. Hyperliquid activated AQAv2, a mechanism that uses proceeds from its USDC reserves to repurchase and destroy HYPE, with the first payment scheduled for October. Data related to this release shows that its related annual revenue is close to US$178.5 million, with an average monthly rate of approximately US$14.5 million, and an average daily rate of approximately US$489,000. This builds on the existing aid fund, which has used a portion of transaction costs for buybacks, and the cumulative destruction volume is reported at 47.27 million HYPEs, accounting for approximately 4.73% of the maximum supply of 1 billion units. Hyperliquid's agreement fee and revenue data has been published on DefiLlama, and the repo transaction itself is visible on the chain.

The boundaries of these revenue figures deserve clarity: they are predictions related to a mechanism that has not yet made an initial payment. In October, this number will become a fact rather than a forecast.

HYPEUSD August 26. Source: TradingView

What does this mean for HYPE's valuation?

The income multiple has expanded, and understanding how much it has expanded is more important than the record itself.

The revenue multiple, which refers to the market value of a token divided by the annualized revenue of the agreement behind it, is one of the few effective valuation tools in cryptocurrencies because most tokens have no revenue to calculate at all.

On August 7, when the trading price of the token was US$55.83, the market value was close to US$12.3 billion, and the agreement generated approximately US$1.39 million in daily revenue, the website calculated that HYPE's multiple was approximately 24 times annualized revenue. Based on today's market value of approximately $21 billion, the same daily revenue base would bring the multiple closer to 41 times.

AQAv2 changes this algorithm, but not as significantly as the title suggests. Its projected daily revenue of $489,000 adds to existing revenue rather than replaces it, which improves the ratio but does not change it completely. To be honest, HYPE has gone from expensive to more expensive, and its bullish reasons depend more on whether the CFTC path brings a real new market than on current data.

How does it compare to our previous reports?

The token has increased by about 49% since we reported three weeks ago, for the exact opposite of what the market feared at the time.

On July 17, we published an article exploring why HYPE fell, when the token price was US$59.93, and pointed out that core contributors will unlock approximately 9.92 million tokens on August 6, which is the shadow hanging over their heads. On August 7, the HYPE price was $55.83, and we reported that the actual promised claim amount was approximately $22.65 million, rather than the $620 million implied by the previous title, and wrote that the shadow is bigger than the monster.

Three weeks later, the token hit record highs four times in six days. The unlock event, which took the market a month to price, turned out to be almost irrelevant, which is what the site has emphasized many times on Arbitrum, Hyperliquid and Ondo: the recipient of the unlock is more important than the unlock size, and the expected supply is usually priced long before it actually arrives.

What are the risks?

Overbought conditions, excessive multiples, and a regulatory path that simply declares intent rather than completed rules.

The CFTC signal was the single largest driver of the rally and the most incomplete. Regulatory intentions have pushed up cryptocurrency prices many times, but have never produced actual rules, and no timetable has yet been publicly set. Anyone who views this path as a fait accompli is pricing an outcome that has not yet occurred.

Momentum indicators have also been high, with analysts pointing to overbought signals and clearing clusters exacerbating current levels of volatility; open interest and clearing data can be tracked on CoinGlass. The situation on the ETF side is mixed and not all positive: HYPE spot products recorded a net outflow of US$4.55 million in July, the first monthly outflow after a net inflow of US$161.05 million in June and a net inflow of US$132.1 million in May. The cumulative net inflow dropped to US$288.59 million. The flow of funds statement is updated daily on SoSoValue.

What prices are worth paying attention to now?

US$83.50 above is a record to be recovered, and the US$76 to US$77 below is the support level that the rally will first test.

If momentum continues, analysts have regarded US$97 and the integer mark of US$100 as the next reference targets, and the forecast market believes that the probability that HYPE will reach US$100 before the end of 2026 is approximately 51.5%. These goals depend on how the CFTC path progresses, not just the predictions of the chart itself.

Summary

On August 26, 2026, HYPE reached an all-time high of US$83.50, driven by: the CFTC expressed interest in establishing a U.S. market path for Hyperliquid's perpetual contracts and the activation of a fee-funded repurchase mechanism. On the same day, 93 of the 100 crypto assets tracked fell.

Rising alone in falling markets is the strongest form of relative strength, but it is also the most likely to reverse when the specific story driving this trend falters. The first AQAv2 payment in October and any substantial progress in the CFTC are two key events in determining whether this rally can become a more lasting trend.

This article is for reference only and does not constitute investment advice. Cryptographic assets fluctuate very much and you may lose all your principal. Please be sure to study it yourself.