Hyperliquid Price Forecast: HYPE drops to $84 as Hyperliquid Labs begins $330 million OTC distribution

Hyperliquid Labs distributed 3.75 million HYPE tokens, worth about $330 million, through an over-the-counter (OTC) arrangement with an undisclosed institution, rather than selling the tokens on public exchanges.

Hyperliquid Labs distributes $330 million HYPE through OTC

According to onchain data shared by OnchainLens on Wednesday, the tokens completed a seven-day unstaking period before the full allocation was credited to Hyperliquid Labs’ spot balance.

The team confirmed that the tokens are part of an OTC transaction and will not be sold through public markets. So far, 1.875 million HYPE, representing half of the total allocation, has been distributed across five OTC buyer wallets. Each wallet received 375,000 HYPE.

The remaining 1.875 million tokens are yet to be distributed. The move represents one of the largest team-related HYPE transfers to date and is consistent with previously disclosed October vesting for core contributors.

The OTC structure means the newly distributed tokens are not being directly added to public market selling pressure. However, the movement of such a large allocation remains a development closely watched by HYPE market participants.

HYPE retreats from record high as spot demand remains flat

The distribution comes as HYPE trades well below its recent record high. HYPE reached an all-time high of $97.96 in late September before retreating to $84. The decline represents a drawdown of roughly 14% from the peak as the broader cryptocurrency market entered a consolidation period.

Institutional demand for HYPE has also remained subdued. Hyperliquid-related funds recorded no net flows on Wednesday, extending a period of limited activity. Over the past two weeks, the products only recorded $12.5 million in net inflows, according to SoSoValue data.

On the derivatives end, interest in HYPE futures has slowed since dropping from its August levels. In September, open interest, which tracks the total value of outstanding contracts in a derivatives market, fell to a yearly low of 36.4 million HYPE before rising slightly to 38 million HYPE.

HYPE technical outlook: HYPE tests 50-day EMA after rejection near record high

On the daily chart, HYPE holds just above the 50-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA) at $83.3, while the 20-day EMA at $88.8 caps it, keeping the near-term bias neutral. The broader trend backdrop remains constructive as price stays comfortably above the 100-day EMA at $75.2. Despite the move, momentum has cooled, with the Relative Strength Index (RSI) slipping toward a neutral 44 and the Stochastic reading near 26 hinting at fading bullish pressure after the recent rise.

On the downside, immediate support is seen at the 50-day EMA, with a stronger demand zone emerging from the convergence of the nearby horizontal level and the 100-day EMA at $75.2, before the deeper floor at $51.5.

On the topside, initial resistance comes at the 20-day EMA at $88.8. A sustained break above this cluster would expose the next significant hurdle at the $97.9 record high.

(The technical analysis of this story was written with the help of an AI tool. Know more.)