Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance, took a nuanced swing at Hyperliquid during an appearance on the Galaxy Brains podcast on June 10. He called the platform technically impressive. Then he said he’d never run a project the way they do.
The core issue: Hyperliquid markets itself as a decentralized exchange, but CZ argued that a small team effectively controls the entire operation. For a protocol processing billions in daily trading volume without KYC requirements, that’s a governance structure worth scrutinizing.
What CZ actually said
CZ acknowledged Hyperliquid’s appeal, particularly to users who don’t want to deal with Know Your Customer verification, something Binance enforces across its platform. He described the protocol’s technical achievements as genuinely innovative.
“I would never do what they do.”
