Kinetiq

Kinetiq emerged in late 2024 and was developed by Kinetiq Research. Founded by the pseudonymous Omnia.hl, it is a native Hyperliquid liquid-staking protocol that lets users stake HYPE for kHYPE and uses StakeHub as its autonomous validator-scoring and delegation system.^[20]​^[8]​^[1]​

Overview

Kinetiq addresses the capital-efficiency limitation of native staking, where staked HYPE is locked from other uses. Its kHYPE liquid-staking token represents staked HYPE and remains usable in decentralized finance (DeFi) while the underlying HYPE is staked, allowing users to retain DeFi access while earning staking rewards.^[1]​

The protocol’s broader scope includes iHYPE, Markets.xyz, Launch, and Elysium, a Layer 2 announced for the Hyperliquid ecosystem and scheduled for mainnet launch on November 9, 2026.^[10]​^[11]​^[12]​^[13]​

History

Kinetiq’s development was facilitated by Hyperliquid’s mainnet upgrade that enabled “CoreWriter Contracts,” which allow for more complex smart-contract interactions on the network.^[4] Kinetiq launched on mainnet on July 15, 2025, coinciding with the CoreWriter upgrade.^[21]​

Shortly after its launch in mid-July 2025, Kinetiq initiated a points program to incentivize user deposits and participation. This campaign was a significant driver of the protocol’s early growth. The Total Value Locked (TVL) in the protocol grew from approximately $458 million in mid-July to over $2.1 billion by September 11, 2025, alongside an increase in HYPE deposits from under 10 million to nearly 40 million tokens. The points program was scheduled to conclude with a final distribution on October 16, 2025.^[5]​^[6]​

KNTQ’s genesis took place on November 27, 2025. On May 27, 2026, Kinetiq announced that KNTQ had been listed on Kraken.^[10]​^[14]​

On October 1, 2026, Kinetiq announced that final kPoints had been distributed after 46 weeks and opened a 10-day claim window for eligible users to acquire up to 50 million KNTQ without lockup.^[15]​

On September 16, 2026, Kinetiq announced KIP-5, changing the destination of protocol-funded KNTQ buybacks from sKNTQ distributions to the Hyperliquid Assistance Fund.^[16]​

Technology

Kinetiq is built as a native protocol on the Hyperliquid Layer 1, allowing for deep integration with the blockchain’s core infrastructure for efficient operations and security.^[1]​

Core Mechanism

The protocol’s user flow is designed for simplicity and automation.

1. Staking: A user deposits HYPE tokens into the Kinetiq smart contract.
2. Minting: The protocol issues kHYPE as a receipt for the user’s staked HYPE. kHYPE is non-rebasing: the user’s kHYPE balance stays fixed while its HYPE redemption value rises as net staking rewards accrue, rather than representing a fixed 1:1 amount.
3. Delegation: The deposited HYPE is automatically delegated to validators selected by the StakeHub system.
4. Reward Accrual: Staking rewards generated by validators accrue automatically, increasing the HYPE redemption value of kHYPE.
5. Unstaking: To redeem HYPE, a user queues a withdrawal and receives a withdrawal ID. The process takes roughly 8–9 days, comprising a one-day delegation lockup and a seven-day unstaking queue. After the delay, the user confirms the withdrawal; kHYPE is burned and HYPE is returned.^[22][1]

kHYPE Token

​Kinetiq Staked HYPE (kHYPE) is the liquid staking token that represents a user's staked position. It is a yield-bearing asset designed for composability, meaning it can be used as collateral, in liquidity pools, or for trading across the Hyperliquid DeFi ecosystem. The token follows a non-rebasing model; instead of the quantity of kHYPE in a user's wallet increasing, the exchange rate between kHYPE and HYPE increases as staking rewards are added to the pool. A related token, vkHYPE, has also been introduced and became tradable on the Project X platform on October 7, 2025. On October 13, 2026, kHYPE became usable as collateral for options and perpetual trading on Derive V3 on Ethereum through Chainlink CCIP; HYPE staking rewards continue to accrue, according to Derive's announcement.^[1]​^[6]​^[17]​

StakeHub

StakeHub is Kinetiq’s autonomous validator-management system for HYPE staked through the protocol. Kinetiq documents five validator-scoring categories: reliability, security, economics, governance participation, and longevity and software maintenance. Scores are monitored 24/7, with gradual stake reallocations following significant score changes. The system removes degraded validators, adds new entrants, and can respond to critical validator failures through emergency rebalancing. It diversifies stake across operators and geographies; scores and delegations are published onchain and are auditable.^[23]​

Security

Kinetiq’s security framework includes multiple layers to protect user assets. The protocol’s smart contracts have undergone independent security audits from four firms: Spearbit, Pashov Audit Group, Zenith, and code4rena. Its public Cantina bug bounty is live; the current listing shows a $1 million total reward pool. The protocol also incorporates onchain safeguards, including an emergency response system, role-based access controls for critical functions, multi-signature controls, and a secure framework for upgrades.^[24]​^[7]​^[1]​

Elysium

Kinetiq describes Elysium as a high-performance, general-purpose Layer 2 built for the Hyperliquid ecosystem. The initiative is intended to support faster execution for spot trading, proprietary automated market makers (AMMs), token launches, and other onchain applications. Its stated design connects EVM applications with Hyperliquid data and liquidity through a connection to HyperCore and adapted L1Read precompile and oracle data, with HYPE used for gas. These are Kinetiq’s design intentions and descriptions.^[18]​

​Elysium's testnet was available, and Kinetiq's official announcement on October 20, 2026 scheduled mainnet for November 9, 2026. That was the announced future launch date as of the article's November 7, 2026 cutoff. Kinetiq described a fee plan allocating 25% of sequencer revenue to builders, 25% to the treasury, and 50% to programmatic KNTQ purchases. Under KIP-5, those purchased tokens are routed to the Hyperliquid Assistance Fund.^[13]​^[16]​

Products and services

In addition to its core liquid-staking function, Kinetiq offers several specialized services for different user segments within the Hyperliquid ecosystem.

kHYPE Liquid Staking

Users deposit HYPE and receive kHYPE, a liquid receipt for their staked position. Staking rewards accrue to the position while kHYPE remains usable across DeFi applications in the Hyperliquid ecosystem. The conversion and withdrawal mechanics are described under Core Mechanism.^[1]​

iHYPE for Institutions

iHYPE is a HYPE staking product designed specifically for institutional clients. It provides features and integrations tailored for institutional-grade platforms and workflows, including a separate private, risk-isolated pool, institution-selected validators, custom liquid staking token tickers, and KYB/KYC onboarding. Kinetiq established partnerships with firms such as FlowDesk and IMC Trading for this solution. On August 14, 2025, Hyperion DeFi, Inc. became the first institutional depositor for the iHYPE product.^[3]​^[2]​^[19]​

Launch (Exchange-as-a-Service)

On July 31, 2025, Kinetiq announced "Launch," an Exchange-as-a-Service (EaaS) platform. This service enables teams to deploy their own perpetual futures exchanges on Hyperliquid through a crowdfunding mechanism where HYPE holders can contribute to isolated staking pools for specific exchange projects they wish to support, earning a share of the trading fees from that exchange. Kinetiq provides the technical backend, including validator coordination, governance tools, and automated fee distribution. At the time of the announcement, the platform was described as lowering the capital requirement of staking over 1,000,000 HYPE, then mandated by Hyperliquid Improvement Proposal 3 (HIP-3); Kinetiq's Launch page now states a 500,000-HYPE deployer stake threshold. The platform is live and crowdfunds HYPE stake for builder-deployed HIP-3 markets through exchange-specific pools and liquid staking tokens. Its product page lists Markets.xyz and Borsa.^[3]​^[12]​

Justin Greenberg, Co-Founder and CTO of Kinetiq, described the vision for the platform: "Launch unlocks a new layer of financial expression on Hyperliquid. Teams can now spin up exchanges as easily as stores on Shopify—while backers support visions they believe in, like on Kickstarter.”^[3]​

Markets.xyz

Markets.xyz offers onchain perpetual markets under HIP-3. kmHYPE is the liquid staking token for HYPE backing the Markets.xyz deployer stake. Kinetiq's product page identifies trading as live and says participants earn trading-fee yield.^[11]​

Tokenomics

KNTQ is Kinetiq’s governance token. Its genesis date was November 27, 2025, and its maximum supply is 1 billion tokens. Core contributors’ and investors’ tokens have a documented three-year vesting schedule, with a one-year cliff followed by monthly linear vesting over two years.^[10]​^[25]​

KNTQ’s allocation is 30% for protocol growth and rewards; 25% for genesis distribution, comprising 24% for kPoints participants and 1% for Hypurr holders; 23.5% for core contributors; 10% for the Kinetiq Foundation; 7.5% for investors; and 4% for liquidity.^[26]​^[25]​

KNTQ holders can vote on Kinetiq governance decisions such as protocol upgrades, parameter changes, and reward structures. Staking KNTQ yields sKNTQ, the governance form, which has a seven-day unstaking period and provides tiered referral-share and kmHYPE-minting benefits.^[25]​^[10]​

Under KIP-2, 70% of protocol revenue is used for KNTQ buybacks and 30% is allocated to treasury operations. Separately, 100% of Kinetiq’s share of validator commissions is used for buybacks; participating active-set validators contribute half of their commission on protocol stake.^[10]​

KIP-5, announced on September 16, 2026, redirects future purchased KNTQ from sKNTQ distributions to the Hyperliquid Assistance Fund, making those bought tokens unavailable to ordinary circulation. sKNTQ remains, but the prior buyback-funded staker yield ended.^[16]​^[10]​

Partnerships

Kinetiq has established collaborations across the Hyperliquid ecosystem and with institutional entities. It is a member of the Secure Staking Alliance and has integrated with DeFi protocols including Veda, Felix, Valantis, Curve, Hyperdrive, pvp.trade, Pendle, Hyperlend, and PRJX.^[7]​

On June 25, 2025, Kinetiq announced a partnership with Eyenovia, Inc., the first U.S. publicly listed company to hold HYPE in its treasury. The collaboration resulted in the launch of a co-branded mainnet validator named "Kinetiq x Hyperion," supported by Eyenovia's HYPE holdings. The validator's infrastructure is managed by institutional staking provider Pier Two, which utilizes SOC 2 certified hardware.^[9]​

Funding

On October 22, 2025, the Kinetiq Foundation reported that Kinetiq had raised $1.75 million toward the end of 2024, after bootstrapping for several months. The Foundation named Hyperliquid ecosystem investors Maven 11, Pier Two, Chorus One, IMC Trading, Infinite Field, Flowdesk, Susquehanna, and participating crypto angels. DeFiLlama records the raise as a seed round and also lists the named investment firms.^[27]​^[28]​

Team

Kinetiq was founded by a pseudonymous individual known as “Omnia.hl” or “0xOmnia”. Justin Greenberg serves as the Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer. The protocol is developed and maintained by the entity Kinetiq Research, which is part of the HypurrCo ecosystem, an organization that supports projects building on Hyperliquid.^[2][3][8]