Arthur Hayes, founder of the cryptocurrency Derivative exchange BitMEX and one of the most influential figures in the crypto industry, recently made headlines by publicly challenging Kyle Samani, co-founder of the investment fund Multicoin Capital, to a $100,000 bet on the HYPE Token of the Hyperliquid project. According to Hayes' proposal, within a period of five and a half months, HYPE will outperform any other cryptocurrency with a market Capital exceeding $1 billion, based on CoinGecko data.
The noteworthy aspect of this bet lies not only in its scale but also in its organization. Arthur Hayes allowed Kyle Samani complete freedom to choose the counter Token , provided it met the market Capital requirements. After the betting period ended, the loser had to donate $100,000 to a charity designated by the winner, instead of directly transferring it to the loser. This made the bet more symbolic, reflecting the contrasting confidence and investment views of two prominent figures in the crypto world.
The origins of this challenge stem from Kyle Samani's earlier criticisms of Hyperliquid. Samani had previously expressed doubts about the project's legal structure and the motives of its founding team, particularly the fact that the Hyperliquid founder was reportedly living and operating the business in another country. According to Samani, this raised many questions regarding legal risks and the long-term sustainability of the project, and he argued that Hyperliquid had problems in many aspects, from governance to its operating model.
