TLDR:
Table of Contents
- Bitwise’s $BHYP ETF offers 100% direct spot HYPE exposure using in-house staking, not third-party providers.
- Hyperliquid controls roughly 60% of global onchain perpetual DEX open interest as of May 13, 2026.
- The fund carries a 0.00% expense ratio for the first month, then shifts to 0.34% for investors thereafter.
- $BHYP is not registered under the 1940 Act, meaning it lacks standard mutual fund protections for investors
Bitwise Hyperliquid ETF, trading under the ticker $BHYP, has officially entered the market. It offers investors 100% direct exposure to spot HYPE.
Unlike similar products, $BHYP uses in-house staking instead of a third-party staking provider. The fund began trading on May 15, 2026.
Bitwise positions this ETF as a low-cost entry point into Hyperliquid, a platform the firm views as central to the future of onchain capital markets.
Hyperliquid’s Growing Role in Global On-Chain Trading
Bitwise took to X on May 14, 2026, to announce the ETF and explain its rationale. The firm wrote: “We believe Hyperliquid is one of the most important onchain trading platforms in the world.” That statement came alongside the fund’s launch announcement ahead of its first trading day.
Hyperliquid currently holds approximately 60% of all onchain perpetual DEX open interest globally, according to DeFi Llama data from May 13, 2026.
That figure alone places Hyperliquid well ahead of competing platforms in the sector. Bitwise cited this directly in its announcement as a core reason for the product launch.
The platform also processes up to 200,000 orders per second, as tracked by Chainspect on the same date. This capacity supports high-frequency activity without the bottlenecks common to other decentralized exchanges. That kind of throughput draws institutional attention for good reason.
Bitwise also pointed to a specific moment as evidence of Hyperliquid’s real-world importance. When geopolitical conflict erupted in the Middle East on a Sunday morning, traditional markets were closed. Institutions, however, did not wait for Monday. They turned to Hyperliquid to execute trades in real time.
What $BHYP Offers Investors and How the Fund Works
The Bitwise Hyperliquid ETF starts with a 0.00% expense ratio for its first month of trading. After that initial period, the expense ratio moves to 0.34%.
Bitwise has agreed to waive the full sponsor fee on the first $500 million of trust assets during the opening month.
The fund intends to distribute net investment income, including staking rewards net of expenses, to shareholders on a periodic basis.
Staking rewards, however, are not guaranteed. They are subject to change and should not be treated as a performance indicator.
Additional costs such as brokerage and commission fees may also apply beyond the stated expense ratio. Investors are advised to read the prospectus carefully before committing capital. The current prospectus is available at bhypetf.com/welcome.
It is also worth noting that $BHYP is not registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940. As a result, it does not carry the same protections as mutual funds or ETFs that fall under that framework. The fund carries a high degree of risk and the potential for complete loss of investment.
