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Hyperliquid Explained Simply

Understanding blockchain trading like you're five

Getting Started with Hyperliquid

What You Need to Start Trading

Explain Like I'm 5:

To start trading on Hyperliquid, you need two things: a digital wallet (like a special app that holds your digital money) and some digital money to trade with. You can also use just your email if you don't want to set up a wallet!

You can trade on Hyperliquid in two ways:

Email Login

The simplest way to get started - just use your email address to create an account.

  • No wallet setup required
  • Verify with a 6-digit code sent to your email
  • A blockchain address is automatically created for you

Crypto Wallet

Use your existing crypto wallet to connect to Hyperliquid.

  • Works with popular wallets like Rabby, MetaMask, WalletConnect
  • More control over your funds
  • Better for experienced crypto users

Collateral You Need

To trade on Hyperliquid, you'll need one of these:

$

USDC on Arbitrum

USDC is a stablecoin that's pegged to the US dollar. You'll also need a small amount of ETH for gas fees.

BTC on Bitcoin

You can also use Bitcoin as collateral for trading on Hyperliquid.

How to Onboard to Hyperliquid

Option 1: Email Login

  1. Connect with Email: Click the "Connect" button on the Hyperliquid website and enter your email address.
  2. Verify: A 6-digit code will be sent to your email. Enter this code to log in.
  3. Deposit Funds: A new blockchain address is created for your email. You can send USDC over the Arbitrum network or BTC over Bitcoin.
  4. Start Trading: Once your deposit is confirmed, you can start trading!

Option 2: Crypto Wallet

  1. Connect Wallet: Go to app.hyperliquid.xyz/trade and click the "Connect" button. Choose your wallet from the options.
  2. Approve Connection: A pop-up will appear in your wallet asking you to connect to Hyperliquid. Press "Connect."
  3. Enable Trading: Click the "Enable Trading" button and sign the gas-less transaction in your wallet.
  4. Deposit Collateral: Choose between BTC on Bitcoin or USDC on Arbitrum, enter the amount you want to deposit, and confirm the transaction.
  5. Start Trading: Once your deposit is confirmed, you're ready to trade!

How to Trade on Hyperliquid

Explain Like I'm 5:

Trading on Hyperliquid is like betting on whether the price of something will go up or down. If you think it will go up, you "go long." If you think it will go down, you "go short." You can use "leverage" to make bigger bets with less money, but be careful - bigger bets mean bigger risks!

Hyperliquid uses perpetual contracts (or "perps"), which let you trade cryptocurrencies without actually owning them. Here's how to place a trade:

  1. Select a Token: Use the token selector to choose which cryptocurrency you want to trade.
  2. Choose Direction: Decide if you want to "long" (bet the price will go up) or "short" (bet the price will go down).
  3. Set Position Size: Use the slider or type in how much you want to trade. Remember that your position size = your leverage × your collateral.
  4. Place Order: Click "Place Order" and confirm in the modal that appears.

Pro Tip

You can check the "Don't show this again" box in the confirmation modal so you don't have to confirm each order in the future.

Depositing and Withdrawing

How to Deposit USDC

You'll need ETH and USDC on the Arbitrum network. ETH is only used as gas for transactions to deposit USDC. Trading on Hyperliquid itself doesn't cost gas.

  1. Get ETH and USDC on Arbitrum (using bridges or directly from exchanges)
  2. Go to app.hyperliquid.xyz/trade
  3. Click the "Deposit" button
  4. Enter the amount of USDC you want to deposit
  5. Confirm the transaction in your wallet

How to Withdraw USDC

  1. Go to app.hyperliquid.xyz/trade
  2. Click the "Withdraw" button in the bottom right
  3. Enter the amount of USDC you want to withdraw
  4. Click "Withdraw from L1" (This transaction doesn't cost gas, but there is a $1 withdrawal fee)