The Threat of Marginalization
The biggest threat to crypto's progress, according to Hyperliquid co-founder Yan, is not a sudden collapse but a gradual descent into irrelevance. He stated, "If Hyperliquid fails, it won’t be because of the protocol. It will be because we didn’t create something truly valuable for the world."
Beyond Speculation: The Need for Real-World Value
Hyperliquid, a decentralized derivatives exchange built on its own blockchain, has experienced significant growth. However, Yan's concerns highlight a broader apprehension within the DeFi sector: the potential for innovation to stagnate if projects fail to address real-world problems. He described "marginalization" as a slow erosion of relevance, a future where DeFi exists but lacks widespread appeal due to insufficient value beyond speculative trading.
This sentiment arises at a time when global DeFi activity has plateaued. Data from DeFiLlama indicates that the total value locked (TVL) across all protocols has remained around $70 billion for several months, a stark contrast to its peak of $180 billion in 2021. The initial fervor for yield farming and token launches has subsided, and many projects that once aimed to revolutionize finance are now grappling to establish sustainable use cases.
Yan believes that the future of DeFi must prioritize long-term utility over transient hype. He advocates for developers to minimize reliance on off-chain assumptions, such as external price feeds or opaque collateral backing. Instead, he urges the creation of systems that are verifiable directly on the blockchain, leading to enhanced transparency, improved data consistency, and fewer single points of failure.
Hyperliquid Introduces New Trading Pair for MegaETH
Hyperliquid has introduced a new trading pair, MEGA-USD hyperps, enabling users to long or short the forthcoming MegaETH token prior to its official launch. This allows traders to speculate on MegaETH's future price with up to 3x leverage, providing an avenue to gain exposure or hedge positions before the token's debut.
By community request, Hyperliquid has listed MEGA-USD hyperps. You can now long or short the unlaunched MegaETH token with up to 3x leverage. pic.twitter.com/PUWToNdmd0
— Hyperliquid (@HyperliquidX) October 22, 2025
This development underscores Hyperliquid's expanding role in offering innovative on-chain derivatives markets, where users can trade synthetic versions of anticipated assets within a fully decentralized framework.