Bitwise CIO Matt Hogan said the US attack on Iran over the weekend highlighted how quickly global finance is moving to blockchain-based systems. Hogan said that with traditional exchanges closed, crypto markets have become the primary venue for price discovery.
In a memo published on Tuesday, Hogan explained how the on-chain platform handled trading activity in the hours after President Donald Trump announced his attack on Iran.
At the time, U.S. stock markets, futures exchanges, and major currency trading desks were closed, leaving investors with no traditional means of reacting to the news.
“As this weekend showed, investors now have an alternative,” Hogan wrote. “They can turn to crypto-based rails that trade 24/7.”
HyperLiquid, a decentralized exchange offering perpetual futures tied to digital assets and commodities such as oil, has emerged as a central hub of activity amid volatility.
Trading volumes on the platform rose sharply, and Hogan noted that Bloomberg referenced the company’s oil contracts when covering the market’s reaction to the strike. HYPE, the platform’s native token, rose about 30% over the weekend.
Tokenized gold also attracted interest. XAUT, a gold-backed asset issued by Tether, had daily trading volume of over $300 million during the period.
Hogan said this episode was the first time he witnessed a blockchain-enabled venue effectively functioning as a marketplace during a major geopolitical event.
He suggested that hedge funds, banks and other institutional investors may need to quickly adopt stablecoins and decentralized trading infrastructure to remain competitive even if developments unfold outside of normal hours.
“The transition to on-chain finance is inevitable,” Hogan wrote. “After this weekend, I am confident that it will happen sooner than anyone expected.”
Disclosure: This article was edited by Estefano Gómez. Please see our Editorial Policy for more information on how we create and review content.
