Hyperliquid volumes jump in tokenized oil, gold as U.S.–Iran tensions rise

Traders shifted into tokenized oil and gold on the decentralized exchange Hyperliquid over the weekend as regional tensions escalated. Oil perpetual futures tied to crude rose around 20%, with the USOIL contract reaching $97 and OIL hitting $76, on roughly $17 million in volume. Gold traded back above $5,400 per ounce, while Bitcoin hovered just over $65,000.

The burst of activity followed reports of strikes in Iran and heightened geopolitical risk. On Hyperliquid, the USOIL and OIL contracts-both quoted against the platform’s USDH stablecoin-drew heavy interest as participants looked for exposure to energy prices while traditional commodity markets were closed.

Tokenized gold also saw strong demand. Spot-linked gold instruments on Hyperliquid recorded about $148 million in trading volume as prices pushed above $5,400 per ounce. Off-chain gold tokens including Tether Gold and Paxos Gold advanced. Hyperliquid’s HYPE token trades around $30 on March 2.

Concerns centered on potential supply disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, a key maritime passage that handles more than $500 billion of oil and gas shipments annually, according to industry estimates. Perpetual futures contracts that track prices without an expiry date offer 24/7 access and allowed traders to express risk views in real time over the weekend.

Kenny Chan, Coinbase’s head of Stablecoin Ecosystem, described the weekend as a clear case for tokenized markets: “This is the power of tokenized assets and perpetuals built on crypto infrastructure.” He continued: “For years, whenever a major geo event hit over the weekend, Bitcoin was the only choice available to traders. This weekend was different. Traders didn’t need to route through Bitcoin anymore. They went straight to the source on Hyperliquid: perpetual futures tied to oil, gold, and silver — the assets that you actually want to take a view on.”

Bitcoin lagged commodity-linked tokens during the rotation. Over the past 24 hours, Bitcoin edged down to around $66,476, while Ethereum slipped to $1,961. Bitcoin remains down more than 20% over the past month and sits nearly 50% below an October peak of about $126,000. Gold has extended its rally into 2026 amid geopolitical uncertainty.