Grayscale's amended Hyperliquid ETF filing drops Coinbase as custodian, names Anchorage

Crypto asset manager Grayscale has amended its Hyperliquid-linked exchange-traded fund proposal to name Anchorage Digital Bank as a custodian, seemingly replacing the previously-named Coinbase as the fund’s prime broker and custodian.

The move is significant given Coinbase’s outsized role as a custody services provider for the crypto ETF landscape. Notably, Coinbase Custody Trust Company is the primary custodian for nearly all U.S.-traded spot bitcoin ETFs, with Fidelity being a notable exception, as Fidelity Digital Assets holds its fund’s underlying bitcoins.

In August, Grayscale tapped Anchorage — the first federally chartered crypto bank in the United States — as a secondary custodian for a portion of the firm’s Bitcoin and Ethereum trusts’ holdings. The Grayscale Bitcoin and Ethereum trusts use Coinbase as a primary custodian.

The Bank of New York Mellon is still listed as the HYPE ETF's transfer agent in Monday's updated filing.

Anchorage is one of the most established crypto custodians, having been founded in 2017. In recent months, the firm has rapidly scaled its offerings, including expanding further into the stablecoin sector as an institutional service provider and into wealth management and token lifecycle management.

Last month, Anchorage also became the first U.S.-based firm to onboard Tron following the Securities and Exchange Commission’s investigation into Tron founder Justin Sun’s multiple businesses. It plans to introduce Tron-staking offerings.

Hyperliquid’s perps DEX platform is currently ring-fenced in the United States. Coinbase listed Hyperliquid’s native HYPE token in February, following the protocol's massive growth in 2025. While Binance dominates the crypto derivatives sector, Coinbase has moved to expand its offering and gain market share, particularly through its Deribit acquisition, as it looks to become the "everything exchange."

Expand Chart

Grayscale's updated HYPE ETF amendment continues to note that the fund’s staking optionality is subject to regulatory approval and that it will use CoinDesk Hyperliquid Benchmark Extended Rate pricing data. The firm filed its initial proposal on March 20, following previous filings from 21Shares, Bitwise, and 21Shares late last year.

If approved, the fund would trade on Nasdaq under the ticker GHYP.

Under a more favorable regulatory environment, Grayscale has moved to expand its crypto fund and trust product offerings, including for Binance’s BNB token and Zcash, among other proposals. It was also the first to offer a Chainlink ETF.

Hyperliquid is the largest onchain perps DEX, according to The Block’s data. Although barred from use in the U.S., the team behind the protocol recently funded the Hyperliquid Policy Center lobbying group based in Washington, D.C.

Expand Chart

Tether made a $100 million strategic equity investment in Anchorage in February, valuing the firm at $4.2 billion. The firm was previously valued at $3 billion in a $350 million Series D round in 2021. Bloomberg has reported that Anchorage is gearing up to go public.