Arthur Hayes Abandons Memecoins, Seeks High-Yield DeFi Plays for Future Growth
ByAinvest
Saturday, Sep 13, 2025 4:39 pm ET2min read
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Hyperliquid's USDH Announcement
On September 5, Hyperliquid announced that the USDH stablecoin ticker would be released through an on-chain validator voting process. The voting, conducted entirely on Hyperliquid L1, aims to select the team most capable of building a compliant, Hyperliquid-first stablecoin. The selected team will then participate in a regular spot deployment gas auction. Hyperliquid emphasized that USDH is not a special privilege but a symbol of a highly demanded canonical token ticker [1].
Competing Issuers
Several prominent stablecoin issuers have submitted proposals for USDH:
- Paxos: Known for its compliance expertise and strong global partnerships, Paxos has established relationships with major platforms such as FalconX, Looping Collective, and HyperLend. Paxos aims to leverage its extensive network to deploy USDH successfully [1].
- Frax: The Frax team, known for its decentralized vision, has designed and operated billions of dollars worth of stablecoins with zero security incidents. Frax emphasizes its strict incentive and mechanism design and a strong track record [1].
- Agora: Backed by asset management giant VanEck, Agora partners with prominent platforms such as Rain and LayerZero. Agora emphasizes its neutrality and criticizes Paxos for having its own settlement network and brokerage business [1].
- Native Markets: Led by Max Fiege, Native Markets plans to donate a portion of its reserve income to an aid fund. It aims to mint USDH directly on the HyperEVM and inherit the global compliance channels of issuer Bridge [1].
- Konelia: The Konelia team's proposal, which emphasizes the automatic compounding yield of short-term US Treasury bonds, has received mixed reactions from the community [1].
Community and Ecosystem Reactions
The Hyperliquid community has shown mixed attitudes towards the USDH proposal. Some projects, like Kinetiq, have decided to abstain from voting, while others, like Hyperstable, have criticized the unfairness of the process. Circle, the issuer of USDC, is also reportedly anxious about the competition, as it has yet to launch its native USDC on the Hyperliquid chain [1].
Arthur Hayes' Perspective
Arthur Hayes, co-founder of BitMEX, has shifted his focus to high-yield DeFi protocols that pay token holders. He believes that projects with real revenue, product-market fit, and value returned to token holders will perform well. Hayes is backing EtherFi, Ethena, and Hyperliquid, projecting 100x-plus returns by 2028. He remains bullish on Bitcoin but sees asymmetric upside in DeFi protocols capturing the growing stablecoin and on-chain markets .
Conclusion
The USDH issuance battle is a significant event for the Hyperliquid ecosystem and the stablecoin market. The competition highlights the growing demand for stablecoins and the importance of compliance and partnerships in the issuance process. As the vote approaches, investors and financial professionals will be closely watching the developments within the Hyperliquid ecosystem.
References
[1] https://www.odaily.news/en/post/5206158
https://example.com/arthur-hayes-interview
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Arthur Hayes, co-founder of BitMEX, is shifting his focus from memecoins to high-yield DeFi protocols that pay token holders. He believes projects with real revenue, product-market fit, and value returned to tokenholders will perform well. Hayes is backing EtherFi, Ethena, and Hyperliquid, projecting 100x-plus returns by 2028. He remains bullish on Bitcoin, but sees asymmetric upside in DeFi protocols capturing the growing stablecoin and onchain markets.
The Hyperliquid ecosystem is abuzz with activity as three major stablecoin issuers and two project teams vie for the USDH stablecoin ticker. The competition, set to conclude on September 14, promises to shape the future of stablecoins within the Hyperliquid blockchain. Here's a breakdown of the key players and their strategies.Hyperliquid's USDH Announcement
On September 5, Hyperliquid announced that the USDH stablecoin ticker would be released through an on-chain validator voting process. The voting, conducted entirely on Hyperliquid L1, aims to select the team most capable of building a compliant, Hyperliquid-first stablecoin. The selected team will then participate in a regular spot deployment gas auction. Hyperliquid emphasized that USDH is not a special privilege but a symbol of a highly demanded canonical token ticker [1].
Competing Issuers
Several prominent stablecoin issuers have submitted proposals for USDH:
- Paxos: Known for its compliance expertise and strong global partnerships, Paxos has established relationships with major platforms such as FalconX, Looping Collective, and HyperLend. Paxos aims to leverage its extensive network to deploy USDH successfully [1].
- Frax: The Frax team, known for its decentralized vision, has designed and operated billions of dollars worth of stablecoins with zero security incidents. Frax emphasizes its strict incentive and mechanism design and a strong track record [1].
- Agora: Backed by asset management giant VanEck, Agora partners with prominent platforms such as Rain and LayerZero. Agora emphasizes its neutrality and criticizes Paxos for having its own settlement network and brokerage business [1].
- Native Markets: Led by Max Fiege, Native Markets plans to donate a portion of its reserve income to an aid fund. It aims to mint USDH directly on the HyperEVM and inherit the global compliance channels of issuer Bridge [1].
- Konelia: The Konelia team's proposal, which emphasizes the automatic compounding yield of short-term US Treasury bonds, has received mixed reactions from the community [1].
Community and Ecosystem Reactions
The Hyperliquid community has shown mixed attitudes towards the USDH proposal. Some projects, like Kinetiq, have decided to abstain from voting, while others, like Hyperstable, have criticized the unfairness of the process. Circle, the issuer of USDC, is also reportedly anxious about the competition, as it has yet to launch its native USDC on the Hyperliquid chain [1].
Arthur Hayes' Perspective
Arthur Hayes, co-founder of BitMEX, has shifted his focus to high-yield DeFi protocols that pay token holders. He believes that projects with real revenue, product-market fit, and value returned to token holders will perform well. Hayes is backing EtherFi, Ethena, and Hyperliquid, projecting 100x-plus returns by 2028. He remains bullish on Bitcoin but sees asymmetric upside in DeFi protocols capturing the growing stablecoin and on-chain markets .
Conclusion
The USDH issuance battle is a significant event for the Hyperliquid ecosystem and the stablecoin market. The competition highlights the growing demand for stablecoins and the importance of compliance and partnerships in the issuance process. As the vote approaches, investors and financial professionals will be closely watching the developments within the Hyperliquid ecosystem.
References
[1] https://www.odaily.news/en/post/5206158
https://example.com/arthur-hayes-interview

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