SpaceX IPO Traded on Hyperliquid's Perpetual Futures

The recent public listing of SpaceX has sparked significant interest in the world of finance and cryptocurrency. One venue that has been at the forefront of this trend is Hyperliquid, a blockchain-based derivatives platform. The company's equity perpetual futures (perps) have gained popularity among traders due to their unique features, which allow for 24/7 trading, high leverage, and short exposure without the need for locates or borrow fees.

One notable example of this is the SPCX perp, which tracked the IPO of SpaceX before, during, and after its listing. The contract reached a high of $228.74, mirroring the stock's peak price of $225.64, and also reflected the 48% collapse of the stock's value. A whale on Hyperliquid even ran a combined position worth $14 million at 10x leverage paired with a $60 million Bitcoin short at 40x, showcasing the flexibility and potential of these instruments.

The equity perps' design relies on three key mechanisms: oracles, funding rates, and venues. Oracles provide the price feed for the contract, which is assembled from listed market data during exchange hours and the perp's own supply and demand when Nasdaq is closed. This setup allows for continuous price discovery and has proven to be particularly useful in tracking events that occur outside regular trading hours.

Additionally, equity perps offer access to the global majority, who are often excluded from US brokerage accounts due to residency or documentation requirements. The instrument also eliminates the need for locates, borrow fees, and recall risks associated with shorting, making it an attractive option for traders.