Bitwise launches first Lighter ETP amid Hyperliquid rivalry

Bitwise Asset Management has launched an exchange-traded product (ETP) in Europe tracking Lighter, giving traditional investors a way to bet on one of Hyperliquid’s emerging rivals without buying its token directly.

On Wednesday, Bitwise said its Bitwise Lighter Staking ETP (BLIT) had launched on Deutsche Börse Xetra, making it the first exchange-traded product tracking $LIT, the native token of decentralized derivatives platform Lighter.

The product is fully backed by $LIT held in cold storage and carries a 0.85% annual expense ratio. European investors can buy the ETP through a regular brokerage account without buying or holding $LIT directly.

Despite its name, BLIT isn’t generating staking rewards yet. Bitwise said staking will begin once the product reaches enough assets under management to make the process efficient. Until then, the ETP will track $LIT’s price without generating staking returns.

The Lighter product follows Bitwise’s launch of a Hyperliquid staking ETP in Europe in April, as the asset manager expands its lineup to include tokens tied to some of the largest decentralized derivatives platforms.

Lighter is an Ethereum-based decentralized exchange focused on perpetual futures, using zero-knowledge proofs to verify trades while allowing users to retain control of their assets rather than depositing them with a centralized exchange. The platform also offers zero-fee trading for retail users, part of its effort to compete with established decentralized derivatives platforms such as Hyperliquid.

Lighter recorded nearly $1.8 billion in trading volume over the past 24 hours, according to CoinGecko data.

Lighter takes on the perp market leader

Lighter gained a major distribution channel in July when Robinhood integrated the exchange into Robinhood Chain, its Ethereum layer-2 network. Eligible Robinhood Wallet users can trade perpetual futures through Lighter, with trades settled using Lighter smart contracts on Robinhood Chain.

Hyperliquid remains the much larger player. Unlike Lighter, which operates as an Ethereum layer-2, Hyperliquid runs on its own layer-1 blockchain. It controlled more than 61% of decentralized perpetual futures trading, according to data cited by The Motley Fool, and has continued to expand through its own partnerships.

In May, Circle announced a deal to expand $USDC usage on Hyperliquid, including deeper liquidity and easier transfers of the stablecoin across blockchains. At the time, roughly $5 billion in $USDC was held on Hyperliquid, according to Coinbase.