- Hyperliquid founder Jeff Yan proposed placing compliance obligations on companies operating trading venues on the blockchain rather than on the network itself.
- Yan said the model could allow traditional financial institutions to build products using Hyperliquid’s trading and liquidity infrastructure.
- Hyperliquid remains unavailable to U.S. customers, but Kraken parent Payward plans to offer U.S. investors derivatives based on its technology through a regulated exchange.
Hyperliquid founder Jeff Yan proposed a regulatory model in an interview published by Bloomberg on Oct. 15, 2026, under which compliance responsibility would rest with companies operating trading venues on the blockchain rather than with the network itself. He said the approach could allow Hyperliquid to expand and work with traditional financial institutions without assuming the full regulatory obligations imposed on conventional exchanges.
Regulation at the operator level
Yan compared the proposed framework with internet infrastructure, which supports financial services but is not subject to the same oversight as the companies deploying those services. He cited Amazon Web Services, which provides computing resources to businesses without replacing their core products.
“Regulation sits at the level where the levers of control are, and it’s the ones who deploy [services] who exercise that control,” Yan said.
Hyperliquid aims to serve as an infrastructure layer for trading and liquidity on which major financial institutions can build their own products, according to Yan. He argued against describing traditional financial institutions as outdated, saying they could use Hyperliquid rather than compete with it as a direct replacement.
U.S. access and institutional adoption
Hyperliquid remains unavailable to U.S. customers. However, Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, has announced plans to offer U.S. investors derivatives based on Hyperliquid’s technology through a regulated exchange, Bloomberg reported. Bloomberg had previously reported that Hyperliquid planned to enter the U.S. market through Kraken’s parent company.
Yan acknowledged that U.S. regulators are proceeding cautiously because they must consider the existing financial system and safeguards for its participants. He also said authorities were prepared to respond quickly as new technologies emerge.
“Regulators want to embrace innovation, but that comes with very high responsibility, because there is a system that generally works well, serves many people, and has built-in safeguards,” Yan said.
Yan also confirmed Hyperliquid’s ambition to become “a home for all finance.” He said a permissionless, independent model for deploying the technology could help the financial system serve people around the world more effectively.
Source: Incrypted
