What happened?
Two reports about the same platform landed on the same day, August 31, 2026, and together they create an uncomfortable contrast.
First: according to blockchain data reviewed by CoinDesk, wallets linked to the North Korean Lazarus Group sold more than $30 million worth of bitcoin on the decentralized exchange Hyperliquid over the past three weeks. Lazarus is a hacking group associated with the North Korean regime that has long featured in the largest crypto thefts.
Second: according to Bloomberg, cited by The Defiant, The Block, and Decrypt, Hyperliquid Labs is in advanced talks with Payward, the parent company of the Kraken exchange, over how to bring its perpetual futures to US traders. The report came out several weeks after Donald Trump said his administration was working to bring the platform "onshore", meaning under US jurisdiction.
What is Hyperliquid and what are perpetual futures?
Hyperliquid is a decentralized exchange (DEX) focused on derivatives trading. Perpetual futures (perps) are contracts that allow you to bet on the price of an asset with leverage and have no expiration date. In the US, perps for retail traders are heavily regulated, which is why a potential Hyperliquid entry into the US requires regulatory approval.
How would the US entry work?
According to Bloomberg, as summarized by the individual sources, a potential deal would route Hyperliquid's perpetual futures through Bitnomial, a US-regulated platform owned by Payward. It would be Hyperliquid's first entry into the US market.
The Block adds that Payward has reportedly already submitted an outline of the proposed structure to the CFTC (the US regulator for commodity derivatives), though approval is still pending. The Defiant stresses that the whole thing still hinges on regulatory approval, and that Bloomberg cited people who were not authorized to speak about the matter.
| Element | What we know | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Volume of Lazarus sales | over $30M in BTC over three weeks | CoinDesk |
| Partner for US entry | Payward (Kraken's parent company) | Bloomberg via The Defiant, The Block, Decrypt |
| Route to market | via the regulated Bitnomial | Decrypt |
| Status with regulator | outline submitted to CFTC, approval pending | The Block |
| Political context | Trump said he is seeking the platform's arrival in the US | Decrypt |
Are these two things connected?
Not directly, and it is important not to conflate them. These are two separate findings about the same platform that happened to come out on the same day. Nowhere do the sources claim that Lazarus activity is in any way linked to the talks about US entry, nor that Hyperliquid was aware of or facilitated the movement of funds.
What is factually documented is the timing overlap: a platform through which, according to the data, sanctioned capital from a North Korean group flows is at the same time seeking entry into the most regulated market in the world, with political backing from the White House.
What do we not know yet?
- Whether and when the CFTC will approve the proposed structure. Sources say approval is currently only in process.
- The exact terms of the deal between Hyperliquid Labs and Payward. The talks are "advanced" according to Bloomberg, but the details are not confirmed.
- How (and whether) Hyperliquid's operators or Payward will respond to the findings about the movement of funds linked to Lazarus. We have no public statement on this specific point.
- The total amount Lazarus has moved through the platform over a longer period. CoinDesk gives a specific figure only for the past three weeks.
What to watch out for with news of this type?
With decentralized exchanges, "decentralization" does not necessarily mean the absence of compliance risks, and conversely, entering a regulated market (for example via the CFTC) means stricter oversight of KYC and sanctions. The metrics to track going forward are: the official CFTC decision, any statement from Hyperliquid or Payward about the Lazarus movements, and whether further on-chain data emerges that confirms or refines the scope of the activity.