Original Title: From Zero Users to DeFi King: The Comeback Story Behind Jeff and Hyperliquid
Original Author: @defiance_cr
Original Translation: zhouzhou, BlockBeats
Editor's Note: In the process of building Hyperliquid, Jeff attracted core users by publishing professional technical content, rejecting traditional marketing teams, and driving platform growth through generous rewards and the rapid launch of new trading pairs. The HLP market-making treasury and points program successfully changed user trading habits, leading to explosive growth. The success of Hyperliquid stems from continuous effort, rapid adaptation, and attention to detail, reflecting the important values of persistence and innovation.
The following is the original content (reorganized for better readability):
In 2018, Jeff left Hudson River Trading to prepare to create a decentralized finance exchange. However, due to a complete lack of users, the project had to shut down a few months later.
Five years later, in March 2023, he launched Hyperliquid. Today, it has become the most profitable DeFi protocol.
What’s even more surprising is how they got to this point. Hyperliquid has no marketing team and has never collaborated with any traditional consultants, marketing companies, or KOLs. Yet it has become one of the most discussed protocols on X (formerly Twitter) and even made it to CNBC.
This article will reveal the growth strategies behind them.
Initial User Base
The Hyperliquid mainnet went live on February 26, 2023.
To get a product off the ground, a core user base must be established, which usually requires continuous content output months before the product launch. Most founders in the crypto industry post a bunch of memes and hire KOLs and consultants to attract attention.
But Jeff chose a different approach. He built the initial user base by continuously producing in-depth technical content. His content covered high-frequency trading strategies, liquidity mechanisms, exchange operations, industry commentary, and legal insights. By March 2023, Jeff was posting a high-quality technical long tweet almost every day.
Many people say that Hyperliquid has no marketing team, which sounds like an understatement. The fact is, Jeff's investment before and after the product launch was more intense than any marketing team. He himself is the entire marketing team.
The quality of the technical content he published was extremely high, far exceeding what most people could write. This allowed him to quickly stand out from the crowd, showcasing the capabilities, diligence, and resilience that an excellent founder should have.
The results were also evident. Hyperliquid's daily trading volume surged from $3 million in early March 2023 to $50 million by the end of the month. This high-intensity, continuous content output laid the foundation for today's Hyperliquid "faith community."
Cash Reward Mechanism
Hyperliquid initially generated buzz through a testnet competition with generous prizes, setting the tone for subsequent development.
Cash Rewards After Mainnet Launch
Once the mainnet went live, the real reward mechanism began. For every $10,000 in trading volume generated, users could earn a $1 reward; for every $10,000 in referral trading volume, they could earn $0.5. Subsequently, Hyperliquid introduced a holding reward mechanism to encourage users to open and hold positions; for example, holding a $10,000 position for a week would earn a $100 reward.
Most crypto projects start issuing points without a user base and are very stingy with cash rewards. Hyperliquid's generous approach clearly goes against the trend, demonstrating boldness.
Continuous Adaptation and Rapid Response
Once initial buzz was achieved, Hyperliquid made "speed" its core competitive advantage. It launched new trading pairs at an extremely fast pace. By May 2023, it had launched 25 trading pairs; by November, this number had increased to 60.
The timing was also very precise. When hot projects like Friend Tech, PEPE, and WIF exploded, Hyperliquid was always the first to launch related contracts, even introducing perpetual contracts before some projects went live. This strategic timing brought in a large number of instant users and provided everyone with a real reason to use the protocol.
Whenever there is demand in the market for new products or trading pairs, Hyperliquid is always the first to launch and support.
HLP
The HLP market-making treasury was launched on May 20, 2023, marking their biggest breakthrough.
Before the launch of HLP, Hyperliquid's daily trading volume was about $100 million. Within a month, the daily trading volume quickly surpassed $1 billion.
HLP helped Hyperliquid skip the time and cumbersome processes required to bring in initial market makers, greatly accelerating the platform's development. At one point, HLP held 50% to 75% of the platform's open interest.
As an added benefit, HLP also provided Jeff with more high-quality content to publish, further increasing the protocol's visibility. Users loved his posts about HLP. By September 7, the total locked value of HLP grew from $1.5 million to over $6 million in just 30 days.
As the platform continued to grow, more and more market makers joined, and now HLP accounts for less than 5% of the open interest.
Points Reward Program
On November 1, 2023, Hyperliquid launched a points program, which had an immediate effect.
Within three months, Hyperliquid's average daily trading volume grew from $100 million to $1 billion. However, the beauty of Hyperliquid's points program lies not only in the increase in trading volume but also in how it changed trading behavior.
Through long-term points incentives, Hyperliquid trained users to first increase trading volume and then hold positions, gradually changing traders' habits. Subsequently, they conducted the largest airdrop in history, firmly binding traders' loyalty.
Conclusion
The growth of Hyperliquid is no coincidence; it is the result of hard work and continuous adaptation. Many details that other protocols cannot address have been optimized by Hyperliquid. Over time, they even attracted the best influencers through open market competition, rather than simply relying on KOLs.
In the crypto world, many promising founders ultimately fail. But a close look at Hyperliquid reveals that the truly suitable people are winning this game.
Jeff went from a zero-user exchange shutdown to creating the most profitable protocol in the DeFi space. Most crypto projects ultimately fail, and the difference between those like Jeff who succeed and those who give up is simple: you must keep "playing" this game to win it.
Jeff has provided a playbook that everyone can learn from. Whether you are a founder, developer, or builder in the crypto space, the lesson is the same: keep building, keep adapting, execute boldly, and dare to start over. Don’t let failure determine your future.
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