HYPE gains, XRP extends losses amid Ripple Prime-Hyperliquid integration

Ripple Prime, the institutional prime brokerage platform of Ripple, has integrated Hyperliquid (HYPE) in an effort to expand into the decentralized finance landscape.

The move enables Ripple Prime clients to access cross-margined decentralized finance derivatives alongside other positions on the platform, while keeping risks and capital efficiency centralized, according to a statement on Wednesday. Some of these other positions include traditional assets such as fixed income, FX, and over-the-counter swaps.

"At Ripple Prime, we are excited to continue leading the way in merging decentralized finance with traditional prime brokerage services, offering direct support to trading, yield generation and a wider range of digital assets," said Michael Higgins, International CEO of Ripple Prime.

Hyperliquid has emerged as a rare outperformer, with HYPE recording gains throughout early 2026 even as most major cryptocurrencies remain in negative territory. The platform's open interest recovered above $10 billion in mid-January, despite the market downturn, before sliding back below $6 billion in February, according to HyperScreener data.

Recent protocol developments, such as the activation of HIP-3 — which introduced tokenized commodity trading — have helped HYPE weather the bearish market storm. The platform activated HIP-3 in October 2025, enabling permissionless perpetual market creation.

Its upcoming HIP-4 proposal will introduce outcome-based trading contracts for prediction markets and options-style derivatives.

HYPE gains, XRP extends decline

Following the announcement, HYPE bounced off the 200-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA), gaining over 8% on Wednesday. But momentum is fading, as HYPE has tapered some of those gains after a rejection near $36. HYPE is trading at $34.6 at the time of publication, up 3% over the past 24 hours.

XRP, on the other hand, has remained in a downtrend, breaching the $1.50 short-term support and marking its lowest level since October. A sustained move below $1.50 could extend XRP's decline toward $1.35.

XRP is trading at $1.44 as of writing, down nearly 10% over the past 24 hours.