Bitwise CIO sees Hyperliquid and Robinhood powering crypto’s next upswing
Matt Hougan says crypto’s next bull market may come from traditional-finance tie-ups that could also support Bitcoin and Ether.
By Dev Ramirez · Crypto Correspondent
· 3 min read
Bitwise’s chief investment officer, Matt Hougan, says the next crypto bull market may be driven less by Bitcoin alone and more by platforms linking crypto rails with traditional finance. For everyday investors, the point is that Bitcoin and Ether could still benefit if broader market attention shifts toward crypto-based trading infrastructure.
In a Wednesday blog post shared by Hougan, the Bitwise executive said Bitcoin is “finally showing signs of a bottom” and has been gaining ground relative to U.S. stocks. Still, he pointed to two names, Hyperliquid and Robinhood, as especially important examples of where crypto and traditional finance, often shortened to TradFi, are starting to overlap.
Hougan said investors looking at a potential new bull market should focus on entities “leading this convergence from opposite sides,” naming Hyperliquid’s HYPE token and Robinhood’s HOOD stock.
Why Hyperliquid and Robinhood matter in Hougan’s view
Hyperliquid is a crypto-native trading platform, while Robinhood is a traditional brokerage app that has pushed further into crypto. Hougan’s argument is that the next cycle could be shaped by products that take crypto features, such as round-the-clock trading, and apply them to assets investors already know.
According to Hougan, nearly half of Hyperliquid’s trading volume now comes from conventional markets, including oil, silver and the S&P 500. He also said the platform is moving into spot commodities, prediction markets and options. Spot commodities are physical or immediately settled commodity markets, while options are contracts tied to the right to buy or sell an asset at a set price.
Robinhood is coming from the other side of the market. Hougan cited the Robinhood Chain, a layer-2 network, as an example of a traditional financial company building with crypto infrastructure. A layer-2 network is a blockchain system built on top of another blockchain to improve speed, cost or functionality.
Hougan said he expects the next bull market to be large enough to “lift most of the sector.” He said he is bullish on major crypto assets including Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana, as well as crypto-related equities, while identifying Hyperliquid and Robinhood as particularly well positioned.
Bitwise says one Bitcoin demand signal is improving
Bitcoin traders have broadly said some bottom signals are appearing, while Cointelegraph reported that many still see the bear market lasting several more months or longer. Spot demand, meaning direct buying of Bitcoin rather than exposure through derivatives, has remained a key concern for traders, according to Cointelegraph.
Bitwise also pointed to a possible change in demand. In a Thursday post on X, Andre Dragosch, the firm’s European head of research, described Bitcoin’s apparent demand as “re-accelerating.”
Apparent demand is a metric that compares newly mined Bitcoin with supply that has not moved for at least one year. In plain terms, it tries to measure whether fresh Bitcoin supply is being absorbed while older coins remain held rather than traded.
Hougan has kept a constructive view on crypto through 2026. In February, he wrote that the end of the crypto winter would come “sooner rather than later” and said the market was “closer than you think.” His latest comments frame the potential recovery around the blending of crypto markets with traditional finance, rather than Bitcoin acting as the only driver.
This story draws on original reporting from Cointelegraph.
