Hyperliquid in the US: can Americans use it?
No. Hyperliquid's terms of use exclude US persons, including US citizens living abroad, and its app blocks US visitors. In August 2026 President Trump said the CFTC was working on a legal route, but as of October 2026 none exists.
Quick facts
- Can US residents use Hyperliquid?
- No. Hyperliquid's terms restrict US persons, including US citizens abroad, and the app geoblocks US IP addresses.
- Is Hyperliquid coming to the US?
- Kraken's parent Payward announced a plan in September 2026 to offer Hyperliquid perps to US clients via Bitnomial; it still needs regulatory approval.
The current status
Hyperliquid's terms of use (last updated 15 June 2026) list the United States as a restricted jurisdiction. That covers people located in the US and US citizens or residents elsewhere. The official app at app.hyperliquid.xyz geoblocks US visitors. The protocol itself is permissionless, so the chain can technically be reached in other ways, but that does not make it permitted. Using a VPN or a third-party front end to get around the restriction breaks the terms, and we do not recommend it.
Using a platform you are not allowed to use can leave you without any recourse if something goes wrong. That includes frozen front-end access, a disputed trade or a hack. US tax obligations also still apply to crypto gains made anywhere.
Why it is restricted
Hyperliquid's main product is leveraged perpetual futures. In the US, offering derivatives like these to retail customers generally requires registration with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), as well as identity checks, customer-fund protections and leverage limits. Hyperliquid's app does none of that, so it excludes US users instead.
What changed in August 2026
On 19 August 2026, President Trump said at a White House event that CFTC Chairman Michael Selig was "working to bring [Hyperliquid] into the United States in a fully compliant and legal fashion". Selig had said in June that the agency wants "to create a path to bring these onchain markets into the United States".
What followed, as of October 2026:
- No approval and no launch date. As of October 2026 no US product has been approved.
- Announced Kraken route. Bloomberg first reported talks on 31 August 2026. In mid-September 2026 Payward, Kraken's parent company, announced plans to offer US clients on-chain perpetual futures on Hyperliquid through HIP-3, with Bitnomial (a CFTC-regulated exchange Payward owns) as the market deployer and clearing through Bitnomial Clearinghouse. Under that model the Hyperliquid app itself would stay closed to US users, and leverage and market choice would be narrower. It still needs regulatory approval and has no launch date.
- Opposition. CME and others have pushed back against onshore crypto perpetuals, and legal experts quoted by The Block estimated the rule changes could take up to a year.
In short, a US route is being discussed, but it would probably look like a separate, regulated product rather than access to app.hyperliquid.xyz. We will update this page when something is actually approved.
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Open HyperliquidRegulated options for US users today
| Option | What it is |
|---|---|
| Kalshi BTCPERP | The first CFTC-approved bitcoin perpetual future on a US-regulated exchange, approved on 29 May 2026 and live since early June 2026. Kalshi plans more assets subject to review. |
| Coinbase (Coinbase Financial Markets) | Has offered CFTC-regulated "perpetual-style" bitcoin and ether futures to US traders since July 2025. In May 2026 the CFTC also cleared US customer access to perpetual futures on Deribit, Coinbase's offshore affiliate, treated as foreign futures. |
| Kraken Pro (US) | Reported to have launched regulated perpetual futures for eligible US clients in June 2026. Check Kraken's site for current availability by state. |
| CME and other regulated futures brokers | Dated bitcoin and ether futures through registered brokers. |
| HYPE exchange-traded products | 21Shares, Bitwise and Grayscale list Hyperliquid (HYPE) ETFs in the US. They give price exposure to HYPE, not access to Hyperliquid trading. |
Each of these has its own eligibility rules, leverage limits and fees, so check the provider's site. Regulated products require identity checks. In return, you get US customer protections that Hyperliquid's app does not offer.
Other restricted regions
The US is not the only restricted jurisdiction. Hyperliquid's terms also exclude Ontario (Canada), sanctioned countries such as Cuba, Iran, North Korea and Syria, and the Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk regions. See Is Hyperliquid legal? and the country checker.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use Hyperliquid with a VPN in the US?
No. Hyperliquid's terms prohibit US persons and the use of VPNs to get around restrictions. Doing so can leave you without recourse if your access is cut off, and we do not recommend it.
Is Hyperliquid coming to the US?
Possibly, but nothing is approved. In August 2026 President Trump said the CFTC was working on it, and in September 2026 Kraken's parent Payward announced a plan to offer US clients Hyperliquid perps through a CFTC-regulated exchange (Bitnomial). It still needs regulatory approval and has no launch date as of October 2026.
Can US citizens living abroad use Hyperliquid?
No. The terms restrict US persons wherever they live, not just people physically in the United States.
Can Americans buy HYPE legally?
Americans can get price exposure to HYPE through US-listed HYPE ETFs from issuers such as 21Shares, Bitwise and Grayscale. That is not the same as trading on Hyperliquid.