HYPE joins Nasdaq CME index after 230% rally to $83

Hyperliquid's HYPE token joined the Nasdaq CME Crypto Index on Sept. 1, alongside Bitcoin and XRP, after a 230% rally this year to about $83.

"Hyperliquid's innovative approach to decentralized trading, combined with recent regulatory advances, has made its ecosystem an increasingly important part of crypto and financial markets — and HYPE's inclusion in NCIQ reflects that maturity," Samir Kerbage, chief investment officer at Hashdex, said.

The addition, effective Tuesday, expands Hashdex's Nasdaq CME Crypto Index ETF (NCIQ) to nine assets: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, XRP, Hyperliquid, Stellar, Cardano, Chainlink and Bitcoin Cash. NCIQ began trading in February 2025 with only Bitcoin and Ether, adding assets through successive index reconstitutions as they meet criteria covering market capitalization, liquidity, custody availability and regulatory standards for crypto exchange-traded products.

The listing lands as Hyperliquid negotiates a US entry through Payward, Kraken's parent, which would let registered American traders reach a subset of crypto perpetual futures on the CFTC-regulated Bitnomial venue. Prediction markets price a 62.5% probability that HYPE reaches $100 by year-end.

The token set a record of $86.71 on Aug. 27 without a single registered US trader on the venue, and sat at $83.57 on Monday, up 7.1% over the week, after President Donald Trump said on Aug. 19 that regulators were working to bring Hyperliquid onshore. Hyperliquid routes 99% of protocol and trading fees into repurchasing HYPE tokens, an engine that has retired $1.3 billion of supply since December 2024.

US Entry via Bitnomial

The reported structure would not change Hyperliquid's own app, which stays geoblocked for Americans. Registered users would trade on Bitnomial under US rules, with identity checks and a limited menu — a subset of crypto perpetual futures, not the full offshore order book. Exotic markets built through Hyperliquid's third-party framework, covering commodities and pre-IPO names, sit outside the plan, as does the leverage available offshore today.

Payward closed its takeover of Bitnomial on May 1, a $550 million deal that delivered three CFTC licenses at once. Prediction market Polymarket instead paid $112 million for a licensed venue of its own. Renting costs Hyperliquid far less upfront; the trade is control, because Payward would own the licensed venue and the registered customer.

The CME Group and CF Benchmarks launched two multi-asset crypto indices on Aug. 31 — the CME CF Crypto Market Index and the CME CF Emerging Crypto Index — administered under FCA oversight. Neither settles derivatives contracts; both function as tracking tools that could serve down the line as benchmarks for structured products such as ETFs. Semi-annual reviews each June and December determine which tokens qualify.

Whether volume cleared on Bitnomial ever reaches Hyperliquid's buyback matters more than the headline number. A flat licensing fee and a share of US trading revenue are very different outcomes for the token. For traders already using the offshore venue, nothing changes.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.