Hyperliquid, a leader in the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector, has made a significant stride in shaping the regulatory landscape for digital assets by launching a policy center in Washington, D.C. This initiative, backed by 1 million HYPE tokens valued at approximately $28 million, seeks to establish a lasting institutional presence in the ongoing U.S. regulatory dialogue. Jake Chervinsky, a seasoned legal expert in crypto legislation on Capitol Hill, is heading the new initiative.
What Are the Implications for Perpetual Derivatives?
The newly founded Hyperliquid Policy Center will focus on clarifying the legal framework for perpetual derivatives, a cornerstone for many DeFi protocols. Recent data indicates that Hyperliquid’s protocol alone handled $256 billion in perpetual futures transactions in just the past month, with the total open positions exceeding $5 billion. Despite this substantial activity, perpetual derivatives remain in a regulatory gray area in the U.S., mainly because they lack an expiration date. Regulatory agencies like the Commodity Futures Trading Commission have already targeted other platforms for unregulated activities involving digital asset derivatives, highlighting the pressing need for regulatory guidance.
How Is Legislation Progressing in the Crypto Sector?
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently expressed optimism that comprehensive crypto market legislation will be enacted by Congress come spring 2026. This follows the CLARITY Act’s approval by the House in 2025, which delineates federal regulations for digital commodity exchanges but leaves out securities on derivatives—keeping the discourse alive. In a notable development, the GENIUS Act has begun to regulate stablecoins, with banks like Standard Chartered forecasting increased stablecoin issuance in the coming years.
Lobbyist spending in the U.S. digital asset sector hit an all-time high in 2025, reaching $40.6 million, positioned just after traditional finance. Hyperliquid’s $28 million investment into its new policy center surpasses even the annual budgets of most crypto advocacy groups like the Digital Chamber and Blockchain Association, positioning itself as a major player in policy influence.
For instance, since 2021, the DeFi Education Fund has been pursuing similar policy efforts. Furthermore, November 2025 saw the inception of the Ethereum Protocol Advocacy Alliance, and the Solana Policy Institute’s contributions to federal blockchain policy continue to grow. These organizations have evolved into prominent 501(c)(4) entities with substantial staff and comprehensive advisory programs, reflecting rapid institutionalization in the sector.
Amid these developments, DeFi platforms are increasingly vying not just for liquidity and user satisfaction but also for regulatory and policy dominance. The exclusion of derivatives from new bills may compel US-based platforms to adopt more rigorous KYC, supervision, and transparency standards. In the absence of clear legislative guidelines, protocols might face direct scrutiny from regulators concerning operational transparency and governance practices.
As the regulatory environment unfolds, three distinct paths appear plausible: (1) swift regulatory clarity leading to compliant US interfaces, (2) heightened regulation causing American users to seek international alternatives, thereby fragmenting liquidity, or (3) legislative stagnation keeping derivatives in a nebulous state and redirecting market share to offshore platforms.
With the DeFi industry transitioning from sidestepping regulation to actively engaging policymakers, Hyperliquid’s establishment of a policy center marks a momentous shift. The center’s aim is not only to navigate existing regulations but also to proactively contribute to shaping future policies for a safer and more structured crypto environment.
