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XRP vs Hyperliquid: Which Should You Hold Through the Next Cycle?

By Sam Daodu Published Jun 1, 9:44AM EDT

Quick Read

XRP is hovering near $1.33 under continued bearish pressure, while Hyperliquid has climbed to $67 after a 73.1% gain in May, its strongest month of the year.
HYPE has delivered compounded gains of 170.13% since January, turning $1,000 into $2,701, while XRP’s total compounded performance is -27.1%, turning $1,000 into $729.
Hyperliquid has the stronger setup for the next cycle, with buybacks and spot ETF inflows giving it structural support XRP doesn’t have yet, but the CLARITY Act’s approval could change that equation for XRP.
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XRP vs Hyperliquid: Which Should You Hold Through the Next Cycle? — © Ground Picture / Shutterstock.com

XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) remains under bearish pressure, trading around $1.33, while Hyperliquid (CRYPTO: HYPE) trades around $67, emerging as one of the market’s strongest performers since its November 2024 launch. With XRP posting modest positive Q2 returns and HYPE maintaining a bullish trend, investors are increasingly comparing the two assets ahead of the next market cycle.

We compared XRP and Hyperliquid’s performance since January to see which may offer the stronger long-term opportunity.

XRP Has Battled Bearish Pressure in 2026

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XRP entered 2026 with bearish momentum that triggered a 35.4% decline in Q4 2025. The momentum continued in January, despite $46.10 million in ETF inflows recorded on January 5, which briefly pushed XRP’s price to $2.32. The rally triggered a brief supply squeeze before long-term holders used it to exit positions, leaving XRP down 10.6% for the month.

In February, XRP performed worse, posting a 16.2% decline. But ETF inflows moved from $15.59 million in January to $58 million, reflecting that institutional confidence remained high. When news of the U.S. and Iran conflict hit the market on February 28, XRP fell from $1.40 to $1.27. The bearish momentum continued into March, with XRP losing under 3%, closing the quarter at $1.33.

XRP’s momentum flipped positive in April, posting a 2% gain which broke a six-month losing streak. This positive performance came after news of a ceasefire agreement between the U.S. and Iran on April 8. Market sentiment further improved, with investors’ expectations that the CLARITY Act would get a markup date in April and XRP retested $1.50. But profit-taking around the $1.44-$1.45 zone and the markup being delayed pushed the coin to $1.36 by month’s end.

But the coin soon gave back most of its gains in May, falling about 2%. XRP retested $1.54 after the CLARITY Act cleared the Senate Banking Committee, but selling pressure from holders trying to break even around $1.44-$1.45 pushed it down again. Based on XRP’s performance since January, a $1,000 investment would now be worth $729, a 27.1% loss.

Why Hyperliquid Has Been One of Crypto’s Best Performers This Year

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Hyperliquid has delivered a very different trajectory from XRP in 2026, posting five consecutive months in positive territory. After HYPE suffered a 20.4% loss in December 2025, momentum flipped in January with a 22.7% gain as trading activity on the platform accelerated.

The HIP-3 protocol upgrade was the primary catalyst, expanding Hyperliquid beyond crypto perpetuals into tokenized stocks, commodities, and forex markets. With gold and silver rallying while confidence in the broader crypto market weakened, traders flocked to Hyperliquid’s platform, which generated huge fees. The fees fed directly into HYPE buybacks, with the protocol buying back more tokens than it issued, creating deflationary pressure that supported the price even when broader crypto weakened.

In February, the coin delivered a largely flat performance of under 1% as investors took profits. But the protocol’s buyback system helped keep the token in positive territory. Hyperliquid also continued dominating decentralized perpetual trading, which kept trading activity and revenue strong despite weaker market sentiment.

HYPE delivered more positive returns in March (17.3%) and April (8.68%) as tensions in the Middle East pushed oil prices sharply higher, boosting demand for Hyperliquid’s 24/7 commodity markets. At the same time, growing institutional interest became a major talking point as firms explored ETF products tied to Hyperliquid. The protocol entered a deflationary phase, buying back more HYPE than it distributed in rewards, which kept its setup bullish for those months.

Hyperliquid recorded its strongest monthly performance of the year in May with a 73.1% gain, and climbed to an all-time high of $67. This comes after spot HYPE ETFs began trading on May 12, with cumulative inflows of $109.99 million so far, per SoSoValue. Overall, a $1,000 investment in Hyperliquid at the start of January would be worth roughly $2,701 today, making HYPE one of the strongest performers in the market year-to-date.

Which Should You Hold Through the Next Cycle?

Hyperliquid currently offers the stronger risk-reward setup heading into the next market cycle. The coin has delivered five consecutive positive months, a buyback mechanism, and ETF inflows that XRP’s recovery hasn’t matched yet.

If the crypto market follows its historical post-halving pattern, the next major rally window opens between late 2026 and 2027. This would give the market time to price in the CLARITY Act’s approval and the full impact of spot HYPE ETFs.

For now, Hyperliquid appears better positioned for the next stage of the cycle, while XRP is still in a recovery phase that needs a catalyst strong enough to change investor behavior.

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About the Author Sam Daodu →

Sam Daodu is a crypto analyst who's spent nearly a decade making blockchain understandable—no easy task when most whitepapers read like fever dreams. He writes for 24/7 Wall St., covering Bitcoin, altcoins, and crypto market analysis for investors. Before crypto, he was a tech writer (back when explaining "the cloud" was peak innovation). Since 2018, he's written for CoinTelegraph, Yahoo Finance, The Block, Cryptonews, Zypto, Rain, and more—basically anywhere people want crypto news without the headache. Sam runs MacLabs Marketing, a content agency for crypto brands tired of sounding like AI wrote their website. He also publishes free crypto education on his site for Web3 enthusiasts who think "gas fees" is a typo. When he's not writing or staring at charts, Sam's either: - Watching anime (currently convinced One Piece has better tokenomics than most altcoins) - At the gym sculpting himself into a Greek god - Listening to the music your mum warned you only bad boys listen to Connect: LinkedIn | Email | MacLabs Marketing