Based: The Unified Trading, Spending, and Social Layer of Hyperliquid

Protocol Overview

Based is a full stack social finance network built entirely on top of Hyperliquid’s order book architecture. It serves as an omnichannel interface that connects on chain trading, real world payments, and social participation into one self reinforcing loop. The Based Web Terminal delivers complete Hyperliquid functionality perpetuals, spot, advanced order types, alerts, automation, and portfolio analytics but wrapped in a responsive interface optimized for creators, streamers, and professional traders alike.

Parallel to this, the Based Mobile App extends utility beyond trading. Integrated with Apple Pay and Google Pay, it allows users to spend crypto directly through the Based Visa Card without off ramping into bank accounts. This simple change eliminates the friction and high fees that have long plagued crypto payments. The result is a continuous experience where portfolio value flows seamlessly from the market to daily life. By combining these verticals, Based redefines what a Hyperliquid front end can be, not just a portal to markets, but a lifestyle protocol for the next phase of on chain adoption.

Founders and Protocol Origins

Based was founded by Edison Lim, a Singapore based programmer and entrepreneur whose path through the early blockchain cycles shaped a deep understanding of system design and payment infrastructure. Before starting Based, Edison served as Engineering Lead at Zilliqa between 2018 and 2021, leading distributed-systems work and helping developers learn to build smart-contract code. He later became Tech Lead for an OTC and custody platform that earned a Capital Markets Services license from Singapore’s MAS, giving him firsthand experience with regulated crypto infrastructure. Earlier in his career, he worked at Carnegie Mellon University, building data pipelines for ML researchers under Andrew Moore while completing his M.Sc. in distributed systems security. These experiences convinced him that while blockchains were advancing in speed and composability, the bridge between social engagement, liquidity, and daily usability was missing.

During the rapid rise of Hyperliquid, Edison and a small team of builders recognized that the ecosystem’s unmatched liquidity engine still lacked an integrated social financial layer, one that could capture participation, reward contribution, and bring crypto into everyday spending. They built Based to fill that gap: a self funded, Hyperliquid native protocol designed to let users trade, earn, and spend within a single environment. Their philosophy mirrored Hyperliquid’s own credibility through performance, not promotion. Within months of launch, Based became one of Hyperliquid’s top grossing builder protocols, demonstrating that user alignment and product coherence could outperform speculative hype.

Architecture and Infrastructure

At the heart of Based lies the Based Cloud, a dynamic data layer that acts as the protocol’s brain. It maps every user’s on-chain and in-app actions trading volume, referrals, content creation, and governance activity into a verifiable participation graph. This identity layer powers Based Streams, a continuous emission engine that converts engagement into XP and rewards. Together, Cloud and Streams form a transparent reputation economy where performance is data, not promise.

Each stream runs on time weighted logic, rewarding sustained contribution over short term bursts and resisting sybil manipulation. XP earned in Streams feeds directly into the user’s profile within the Based App, creating a live feedback loop between activity and recognition. This infrastructure has already processed hundreds of thousands of interactions, proving that social coordination can scale with the same precision as liquidity.

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Feature Set

Based’s ecosystem is deliberately expansive, reflecting its ambition to be Hyperliquid’s social-financial core. The Based Bot, available on Telegram and Discord, gives traders instant access to order management, leaderboards, and wallet data, eliminating the need to open the app for quick actions. The Desktop App introduces low-latency execution and advanced order types such as Trailing Stop Loss, a feature not yet native to Hyperliquid, giving professional users exchange-grade control within a decentralized environment.

On the creator side, Based Streams doubles as a live-trading broadcast system. Streamers can earn directly in crypto through viewer donations, copy-trade revenue splits, and platform bonuses. Each stream supports up to three monetization tiers, creating a sustainable creator economy within DeFi. BasedPals NFTs provide visual identity to the community earned through participation rather than minting while Blind Boxes and Based Gold rewards add collectibility to trading seasons. Around these layers sits the Based Launchpad (BasedPad), which hosts early HyperEVM project launches such as Upheaval Fi. Access to these launches is determined by XP and verified contribution rather than capital size, giving active community members a first look at new Hyperliquid-aligned ventures.

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Monetization and Revenue Model

Based monetizes through a transparent, performance-linked structure. Trading routed via its terminal generates protocol revenue, of which up to 76 percent is shared back to users through a three tier affiliate system. Copy trading Streams distribute 30 percent of fees to creators, while donations and sponsorships provide additional yield. The Visa Card program adds payment-processing revenue, turning everyday transactions into another value channel.

These mechanisms proved their strength early on: within two weeks of launch, Based recorded a 50× growth in daily revenue, crossing $800 K per day and achieving a projected $300 million annualized run rate. Even during a DDoS attack on its first livestream event, the protocol maintained uptime and processed over $900 in direct donations from more than 600 concurrent viewers, evidence that community energy translates directly into on-chain liquidity when incentives are aligned.

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XP System and Seasonal Mechanics

The XP layer is where Based converts engagement into economic signals. Season 1 rewarded early adopters with guaranteed allocations ahead of the TGE, while Season 2, launched in October 2025, distributes 10 million XP every three-day epoch. XP is allocated based on consistent trading activity, spot multipliers, and cross-chain participation, with bonus weights for HyperEVM graduates.

Season 2 also introduced a collectible economy through Blind Boxes, NFT Fragments, and the Based Gold currency, merging gaming dynamics with DeFi performance. As XP accumulates, it enhances user visibility, boosts referral rates, and unlocks access to future Launchpad events. This cyclical structure keeps engagement live and measurable, turning participation itself into the platform’s most valuable asset.

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Security and Audits

Security in Based begins with its reliance on Hyperliquid’s audited smart contract base. All trade execution and custody mechanics route through Hyperliquid’s proven systems, while Based’s additional components Cloud indexing, Streams distribution, and Bot APIs underwent internal review and third-party static analysis prior to deployment. Continuous monitoring scripts detect abnormal XP generation or automation exploits, ensuring reward fairness.

For its payments layer, Based partners with regulated issuers under Singaporean and European e-money frameworks. KYC for card issuance remains fully separated from on-chain identities, preserving user privacy while maintaining compliance. The protocol’s hybrid structure of non-custodial trading combined with licensed off-ramp gateways extends Hyperliquid’s reliability into consumer-grade finance without compromising decentralization.

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Funding and Ethos

True to Hyperliquid’s DNA, Based is entirely self-funded. Edison and his team deliberately avoided venture capital to keep ownership and accountability in the hands of builders and users. All incentives flow from verified performance rather than speculative presales, and XP distributions replace traditional token allocations. This model ensures that every participant from trader to streamer to developer grows in direct proportion to their contribution.

Culturally, the team operates in full transparency. Product development, feature rollouts, and revenue metrics are shared publicly, and community feedback dictates iteration cycles. The mantra “Stay Based” has become shorthand for that philosophy: stay grounded, keep shipping, and let data, not hype, prove value. This ethos of composable credibility has turned Based into one of Hyperliquid’s most trusted extensions.

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Roadmap and Ecosystem Role

The next phase of Based focuses on inter protocol connectivity. The upcoming Based Cloud API will allow HyperEVM projects to integrate participation metrics directly into their own dApps, transforming XP into a universal credential for the Hyperliquid network. Future seasons plan to tie XP scores to governance weight, liquidity incentives, and Launchpad access, embedding Based’s reputation system into the broader ecosystem.

On the consumer front, expansion of the Based Visa Card aims to cover new regions across Asia-Pacific and the EU, bringing on-chain liquidity into real-world spending. The gBased initiative will extend affiliate programs and API partnerships to institutional traders and content networks, turning Based into a universal distribution channel for Hyperliquid-aligned products. With these milestones, Based transitions from a product suite into infrastructure the connective tissue that socializes liquidity across the chain.

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The Road Ahead

Based marks the point where Hyperliquid evolves from pure infrastructure into a social economy. It blends market execution, real-world payments, and participatory systems into a unified framework where engagement itself fuels liquidity. The protocol’s growth validates its design with $9.08 million in cumulative revenue, $6.96 million earned in Q3 2025, an extrapolated $2.12 million in Q4, and annualized fees surpassing $31.26 million. Its trading depth remains unmatched, with $7.85 billion in 30-day perpetual volume, $1.51 billion over seven days, and nearly $199 million in daily turnover. These numbers position Based not merely as a companion product but as the primary on-chain interface powering Hyperliquid’s social liquidity loop.

Looking ahead, the team envisions Based as the connective tissue of Hyperliquid’s next cycle expanding its Visa program globally, integrating XP with governance, and extending its Cloud API to every HyperEVM project. The long-term goal is clear: to make every form of participation, trading, creation, or coordination part of a shared economy that rewards those who build it. To explore the ecosystem or join the community, visit BasedApp or connect via Telegram and Discord.

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