Hyperliquid: Whales, retail exit – Can HYPE find support below $20?

• Hyperliquid faces increasing bearish pressure, with long liquidations outweighing shorts.
• Social sentiment dips, reflecting reduced retail interest in HYPE’s potential.

A whale recently deposited 6.51M USDC into Hyperliquid [HYPE] and opened a short position with 5x leverage. This injected notable bearish pressure into the market, pointing to expectations of a downside move.

Given the size of the short position, the whale’s actions could amplify downward momentum.

If the market continues to liquidate long positions, the price of HYPE may face additional corrections in the coming days.

At the time of writing, however, HYPE traded at $20.54—up 1.71% in the past 24 hours.

HYPE long liquidations outpace shorts

According to CoinGlass, liquidation data showed a sharp imbalance: roughly $14,000 in long positions were wiped out compared to just $93 in shorts.

This indicates that traders are being forced out of their long positions, which suggests a growing bearish sentiment. 

Moreover, the imbalance between long and short liquidations highlights the increasing selling pressure on HYPE.

Therefore, the market faces greater downside potential as long positions are flushed out, further cementing the negative outlook for HYPE’s price in the near term.

Cautious sentiment

The OI-Weighted Funding Rate for HYPE stood at 0.00999% at press time, reflecting cautious market sentiment. Traders remained hesitant, unwilling to take aggressive positions. 

Despite the Funding Rate remaining slightly positive, it did not possess the strength needed to drive the price higher. Consequently, the market is stagnant and trapped in a consolidation phase.

Given the cautious attitude among traders, HYPE may struggle to break out of its current range.

Until a clearer bullish signal appears, the market will likely continue in its neutral phase, limiting upward momentum.

Struggling to break resistance

Hyperliquid has struggled to break through the $22 supply zone, resulting in a downtrend.

Currently, the price is consolidating around $20.60, unable to maintain upward momentum. The failure to break through key resistance indicates that selling pressure is increasing. 

Unless bulls reclaim $22, the path of least resistance appears downward. A drop toward the $18 support zone becomes probable if selling persists.

Retail interest slows down

Retail participation is cooling.

Social Dominance for HYPE has dropped to 1.00%, and Social Volume stood at 33.

This decline indicates reduced retail interest, suggesting that fewer traders are participating in the market. As social engagement drops, the momentum required to fuel a price increase weakens.

Therefore, the altcoin may find it difficult to regain upward momentum without fresh interest.

With retail sentiment cooling, the market may struggle to break key resistance levels, and the price could remain under pressure. Lower Social Dominance adds to the bearish outlook for HYPE.

HYPE is facing growing bearish sentiment after hitting the $22 supply zone.

The liquidation data shows more long liquidations compared to shorts, contributing to negative market pressure.

The low OI-Weighted Funding Rate and a drop in Social Sentiment reflect the cautious sentiment among traders. 

Given these factors, HYPE’s outlook remains uncertain.

Unless there is a breakout above resistance or a resurgence in retail interest, the price may continue to decline toward support levels around $18.