“In Web3, it’s not the size of the team that matters, but the quality of the code and the trust of the community. Less means faster, cleaner, stronger.”
— Jordan Winters, founder of DeFi Alliance
In 2025, the crypto industry faced a paradox: in an era where startups attract hundreds of millions of dollars from venture capital funds, one decentralized exchange with a team of just 11 people became one of the most profitable companies in the world. Hyperliquid, a decentralized derivatives exchange (DEX), built on its own Layer-1 blockchain, generates over $1 billion in annual revenue, making it a leader in revenue per employee — more than $102 million per worker.
This figure surpasses giants like NVIDIA, Tether, and OnlyFans. At the same time, Hyperliquid never raised venture capital, never ran toxic tokenizations, and never relied on marketing hype. Instead, it focused on high performance, clean economics, and elite team selection.
Hyperliquid is a decentralized exchange specializing in futures and perpetual contracts (perps). The platform launched in 2023 and quickly gained popularity among traders who value speed, low fees, and transparency.
Key features:
As of August 2025, the cumulative fees collected from users exceeded $610 million, of which ~97% ($589M) went directly to the protocol’s treasury. This makes Hyperliquid one of the most efficient businesses in Web3 history.
The most surprising thing about Hyperliquid isn’t its profits, but who built it. Just 11 employees run a platform that processes tens of billions of dollars annually.
The team is built on the principle of “quality over quantity”:
Jeff Yan deliberately rejected venture funding, believing it creates an illusion of growth without real value. Instead, he built the protocol with his own funds, focusing on the product and the community.
As he once said: “Hiring one strong engineer is better than ten mediocre ones. In Web3, speed and code quality are everything.”
Hyperliquid’s revenue comes almost entirely from trading fees. Unlike many DEXs that dilute profits through tokenization, staking, and governance, Hyperliquid directs nearly all revenue straight to the protocol treasury.
The mechanism is simple:
Meanwhile, the HYPE token has not yet been issued. This means all profits remain within the ecosystem, not distributed to token holders. It creates strong incentives for long-term growth rather than short-term speculation.
According to DeFiLlama, since early 2025, the growth of cumulative fees and protocol revenue has been nearly parallel, with less than a 5% difference. This demonstrates the efficiency of the business model.
Most DEXs run as applications on other blockchains (e.g., Uniswap on Ethereum). Hyperliquid took another path — it built its own blockchain optimized for high-frequency trading.
Advantages of its own Layer-1:
Recently, HLP3 was launched — the next-gen protocol version, improving liquidity mechanisms and reducing risks for market makers.
Despite its success, Hyperliquid faces strong competition. Its main rivals:
One of the first DEXs for derivatives. Migrated to its own blockchain but struggles with decentralization. Its token DYDX lost over 70% of value since 2023.
A popular DEX on Arbitrum and Avalanche. Uses a global risk pool model, which attracts liquidity but increases systemic risks.
Another DEX with its own Layer-1, targeting professional traders. Actively attracts liquidity through AEVO token staking.
However, none of them can boast such profitability per employee. Hyperliquid wins through minimalism, speed, and product focus.
Handling billions requires maximum security. Hyperliquid relies on:
So far, the protocol has not suffered major attacks — a positive sign for investors and users.
One of the community’s hottest questions is the fate of the $HYPE token. It hasn’t been launched yet, but is expected in the coming months.
Possible scenarios:
But the team emphasizes patience. As Jeff Yan said: “We won’t tokenize for the sake of tokenization. Every decision must add value.”
Hyperliquid challenges the traditional startup model in crypto. Instead of:
...it chose:
This approach proved effective. Hyperliquid became a model of how to build a sustainable, profitable Web3 business without compromises.
The story of Hyperliquid isn’t just about money. It’s about philosophy:
As Jordan Winters said: “In Web3, it’s not about how much you spent, but how much value you created.”
Hyperliquid has proven that in an era of overvalued startups and empty promises, true success is built on code, trust, and discipline. And if this model is repeated, the future of decentralized finance will belong not to giant corporations, but to small, strong teams that build real things.
.png)
