Hyperliquid Strategies Files for FCM License to Bring Perps to US

Hyperliquid Strategies (NASDAQ: PURR) announced Thursday that a subsidiary has filed an application to become a futures commission merchant (FCM), a step the company says could bring perpetual futures trading on Hyperliquid to US customers inside a regulated perimeter. The filing was disclosed alongside quarterly results showing $802 million deployed in three months, of which $785 million went to acquiring 9.1 million HYPE tokens.

If regulators approve the application, the FCM would carry US client accounts for permissioned markets deployed under HIP-3*, Hyperliquid's upcoming infrastructure expansion that lets independent operators launch markets with restricted access. The company cautioned that the application remains subject to regulatory approval, with no assurance regarding its timing or outcome.

What does the FCM filing change?

The application positions Hyperliquid Strategies to serve as the customer-account functionary for US traders in permissioned Hyperliquid markets, mirroring a role already claimed elsewhere in the ecosystem. Kraken parent Payward has announced plans to become the first CFTC-regulated deployer under HIP-3*, with:

• Payward acting as regulated market deployer under HIP-3*
• Bitnomial expected to operate and clear perpetual futures markets
• NinjaTrader Clearing serving as the FCM responsible for customer accounts

All of those arrangements remain subject to regulatory approval. Hyperliquid Strategies' filing would give the company an equivalent customer-account function through its own subsidiary, rather than relying on a third-party FCM.

David Schamis, CEO of Hyperliquid Strategies, said the application forms part of a broader strategy to capture value from the Hyperliquid ecosystem through HYPE ownership while expanding access to its trading infrastructure. HIP-3* lets market deployers manage access through onchain allowlists while using Hyperliquid as underlying infrastructure, a design intended to accommodate regulated operators without altering existing permissionless markets.

The treasury machine behind the filing

The quarterly numbers explain why the company is doubling down on HYPE exposure. Its treasury grew from 29.3 million HYPE at the end of June to 38.5 million at the end of September. As of October 28, holdings stood at approximately 38.9 million HYPE, acquired at a blended cost of $56.35 per token, with $245.3 million remaining in cash and cash equivalents.

Put differently: the company added roughly 9.6 million tokens — about a quarter of its entire treasury — in a single quarter. Hyperliquid Strategies reported $620.6 million in quarterly net income for the period ended September 30, driven primarily by $803 million in unrealized gains on its HYPE holdings. Staking revenue and validator commissions contributed a further $12.3 million.

The blended cost basis of $56.35 gives practitioners a concrete benchmark: with HYPE trading near $78 at press time, the treasury carried a paper gain of roughly 38% on average, before the day's drawdown.

Market backdrop and what comes next

Thursday's announcement landed during a broad selloff across crypto and traditional markets. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq declined sharply; Bitcoin traded below $76,000, down nearly 6% over 24 hours, while HYPE fell approximately 7% to around $78.

For US market structure, the filing signals that onchain perpetuals are moving toward the CFTC-regulated stack through the FCM-and-allowlist model rather than through offshore tolerance. The practical question for operators is timing: with Payward, Bitnomial and NinjaTrader Clearing already queued around HIP-3*, the next signal to watch is the CFTC's response to these applications — and whether Hyperliquid Strategies' subsidiary clears registration before competitors lock in the first regulated US perps flows.