Bankless has moved beyond the usual “partnership announcement” hype and is instead looking at what the new deal between Hyperliquid (HYPE), Coinbase (COIN), and Circle (CRCL) could actually mean for USDC. In its latest analysis, the outlet argues that this collaboration is more than just a PR move—especially at a time when stablecoin activity is picking up, but the underlying numbers haven’t shifted as fast as some investors might expect. Bankless describes USDC’s current moment as significant but incomplete, and positions Hyperliquid as the missing piece that could help Circle’s stablecoin turn momentum into real market share.
The USDC Deal
As Bitcoinist reported last week, Coinbase said it’s expanding its role by becoming the official treasury deployer of USDC on Hyperliquid. Under the plan, Coinbase treats USDC as an Aligned Quote Asset (AQA), while Hyperliquid’s USDH token is expected to be phased out gradually.
Related Reading: Hyperliquid ETFs Push HYPE Closer to All-Time Highs—Here’s What the Data Shows
Bankless says this move brings concrete improvements: a much better revenue split—roughly double what Hyperliquid was earning with USDH—plus added regulatory and institutional strength from partnering with what it calls crypto’s biggest voice in Washington, D.C. The report also highlights user experience benefits, especially since USDC is a trusted stablecoin already built into the exchange experience for many traders. Bankless adds that USDC is mainly used in Hyperliquid’s HIP-3 markets, the segment that has driven much of Hyperliquid’s visibility over the past six months or so.
From there, the argument becomes more strategic. Bankless contends that the Coinbase and Circle deal is more than “PR” because USDC already has momentum following the GENIUS Act approval, but its supply share hasn’t changed much. It presents Hyperliquid as the solution to that mismatch—an extra distribution channel that could help stablecoin growth compound, rather than just coexist with the current dominant currency dynamic.
Binance Reinforces USDT Dominance
To back up the claim that “supply share isn’t moving,” Bankless points to stablecoin market composition. In April 2025, it says Tether’s USDT held 67% of stablecoin supply, while USDC held 27.6%. A year later, USDT sits at 67.3% and USDC at 28.1%. It notes that USDC transaction volume is growing, but the overall structure hasn’t really changed—which it describes as the core problem.
The report argues this is happening for a reason. USDC is strongest in the United States, but competition is concentrated right there. Outside the US, the report says, USDT is still the default dollar for saving, investing, and trading—meaning USDC faces a tougher challenge in becoming the base currency across global trading platforms. That’s why distribution is seen as the priority, and perpetuals are viewed as the natural battleground.
Stablecoins are the quote asset that perpetuals are built around, and the ecosystem that dominates the largest exchange tends to reinforce itself. On Binance, Bankless notes, USDT is the standard against which many of the biggest markets trade. In practice, that means traders often transact against USDT, which strengthens USDT’s supply, liquidity, deposits, withdrawals, and on-chain activity.
Hyperliquid May Fix That
Hyperliquid, according to Bankless, offers USDC a way to fight that cycle. The report includes market indicators meant to show that Hyperliquid’s share in the perp ecosystem is real, not just theoretical. It claims Hyperliquid holds 30% of onchain perp market share, commands 46% of onchain open interest, and operates at about 50% of Bybit’s volume, around 30% of OKX’s volume, roughly 79% of Coinbase International’s, and about 13% of Binance’s.
Related Reading: Solana ETF Falls Behind as XRP Collects More Cash—Here’s theThe main driver behind this shift is that, while Hyperliquid is still smaller than Binance overall, Bankless argues the trend is clear—perpetual trading is moving toward an environment where USDC can get more steady exposure. The takeaway is that Coinbase and Circle can let Hyperliquid expand its reach, while USDC benefits from being the stablecoin powering the trading activity. Featured image created with OpenArt, chart from TradingView.com.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here is a list of FAQs about Circles potential integration with Hyperliquid covering both basic and advanced angles
BeginnerLevel Questions
1 What is Circle and why are they making a next move
Circle is the company behind USDC one of the largest stablecoins in the world Their next move refers to expanding USDCs reach beyond just being a trading pairspecifically integrating it into highperformance blockchains and apps to increase realworld usage and supply growth
2 What is Hyperliquid
Hyperliquid is a highspeed decentralized exchange built on its own custom blockchain Its known for handling trades as fast as centralized exchanges but without giving up control of your funds
3 What does integrating Hyperliquid mean for USDC
It means USDC would become the primary stablecoin used for trading lending and settling positions on Hyperliquid Instead of using other tokens or wrapped assets users would deposit and trade directly with USDC
4 How would this help Circle grow the supply of USDC
More usage equals more demand If Hyperliquids millions of active traders start using USDC for everything Circle has to mint more USDC to meet that demand That directly increases the total supply in circulation
5 Is this just about trading fees
No Its about utility If USDC becomes the core asset for a toptier DEX it gets locked into liquidity pools used as collateral and settled for perpetual contracts That creates a much stickier longterm demand than just holding it in a wallet
Intermediate Advanced Questions
6 Why Hyperliquid specifically Arent there bigger DEXs like Uniswap
Hyperliquid offers something different onchain order book matching with centralized exchange speed Uniswap is great for spot swapping but Hyperliquid is built for derivatives and highfrequency trading That volume is massiveoften billions a daywhich means more USDC velocity and minting opportunities
7 Whats the difference between supplyshare growth and just minting more USDC
Supplyshare growth means USDCs percentage of the total stablecoin market increases Minting more USDC can happen without gaining market share