Update Sept. 22, 1:31 p.m. UTC: This article has been revised to include insights from Nicolai Sondergaard, a research analyst at the crypto intelligence platform Nansen.
Significant cryptocurrency investors, often referred to as whales, are liquidating their holdings of Hyperliquid’s native token amid rising concerns about an impending vesting schedule that may release approximately $11 billion in supply.
Whale wallet “0x316f” withdrew $122 million worth of Hyperliquid (HYPE) tokens on Monday, originally purchased for about $12 per token.
This whale was sitting on roughly $90 million in unrealized gains nine months post-acquisition and is presumably “selling for profit,” as per blockchain data from Lookonchain.
The liquidation follows the HYPE token’s rise to a record high of $59.29 on Thursday, but it faces a significant challenge in November when team tokens start vesting.
Related: Institutional demand increases with new crypto treasuries and SEC reforms: Finance Redefined
According to the Hyper Foundation, 23.8% of the total supply designated for core contributors will commence unlocking on Nov. 29, one year after the project’s genesis event.
The vesting timeline will allocate around $11.9 billion HYPE tokens over 24 months to the team, marking a potential “first true test” for the token’s resilience, as noted by BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes’ family office fund, Maelstrom, stated on Monday.
Termed a “Sword of Damocles” moment, this will bring about $500 million worth of monthly unlocks, with merely 17% likely to be absorbed through buybacks, creating a potential supply surplus of around $410 million, according to Maelstrom researcher Lukas Ruppert.
“Token unlocks usually lead to sell pressure,” which isn’t necessarily linked to a token’s “fundamentals,” according to Nicolai Sondergaard, a research analyst at the crypto intelligence platform Nansen.
Sondergaard noted that not every recipient will sell, with some opting to retain their tokens as a show of confidence in the project.
“While some selling pressure may occur around unlock events, the actual result will depend on how both the team and token holders react.”
Related: ‘Diamond hand’ investor turns $1K into $1M as BNB surpasses $1,000
Hayes liquidates HYPE holdings for Ferrari pre-vesting schedule
Maelstrom’s research surfaced right after Hayes liquidated his entire HYPE holdings, reportedly to finance the deposit for a new Ferrari, as Cointelegraph reported earlier on Monday.
“Need to pay my deposit on the new Rari 849 Testarossa,” Hayes remarked on Sunday.
Other whales seem to be reallocating to Hyperliquid’s up-and-coming rival, Aster, a decentralized perpetuals exchange associated with Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao.
On Monday, whale address “0x220” acquired $10.5 million worth of Aster tokens across two wallets and currently holds over $6 million in unrealized gains, according to Lookonchain in a Monday X post.
In the past week, the Aster token surged over 1,700%, making it the fourth largest DEX token in the industry with a market capitalization of $2.5 billion.
Meanwhile, the HYPE token decreased by 7.9% during the same timeframe and was trading at $49.34 at the time of this writing, according to CoinMarketCap data.
Magazine: Altcoin season 2025 is nearly upon us… but the rules have changed
