Hyperliquid, Fragment and Stripe deals point to a revenue-first turn in crypto
A long-form article translated by TechFlowPost from The Token Dispatch argues that crypto startups are moving away from the old playbook of venture funding, token launches and user subsidies, and toward businesses built on real revenue. The piece points to Hyperliquid generating nearly $1 billion in trading fees over the past 12 months without raising money from venture capital firms, and Telegram-owned Fragment posting more than $350 million in net revenue from auctions for anonymous numbers and usernames without issuing a token or selling equity to VCs. It also cites Stripe’s $1.1 billion cash-and-stock acquisition of stablecoin platform Bridge as a sign that fintech and crypto are converging around cash-flow businesses rather than token speculation. Drawing on 1kx’s 2026 blockchain revenue report, which tracked more than 2,600 crypto protocols and 100 public companies, the article says investors are increasingly valuing tokens based on actual distributions, buybacks and fee-sharing. It also argues that distribution has become the new center of value capture, with platforms such as Coinbase, Robinhood Chain and Hyperliquid’s HIP-3 ecosystem taking a larger share of economics tied to user access.
