# Kain Warwick Questions Protections for Hyperliquid’s HYPE Holders By Enna Lee Canonical URL: https://www.tokenpost.com/news/investing/28492 Published: 2026-10-08T20:10:52.000Z Updated: 2026-10-08T20:10:52.000Z Section: Investing > The Synthetix and Infinex founder questioned whether HIP-3 fee sharing leaves enough revenue for HYPE buybacks and burns. Synthetix and Infinex founder Kain Warwick questioned whether Hyperliquid’s fee-sharing model can support HYPE buybacks while offering token holders fewer protections than company shareholders. Warwick said HYPE ownership does not provide the legal rights associated with owning shares in a company. His criticism focused on protocol rules, fee distributions, automated purchases and token burns rather than contractual claims or traditional investor safeguards. The comments were covered Aug. 13, 2026, at 6:46 p.m. ET (22:46 UTC). Warwick also challenged Hyperliquid’s HIP-3 fee structure, which allows external market builders to retain up to 50% of trading fees from markets they deploy. “The fact that Hyperliquid has landed on 50% of the fees is a bit crazy,” Warwick said. “I can’t see how that’s sustainable.” Hyperliquid is a blockchain network built around decentralized perpetual-futures trading. HYPE is its native token and the gas token for HyperEVM. Protocol fees are directed to community-related destinations, including the Hyperliquidity Provider, the Assistance Fund and market deployers. HYPE held by the Assistance Fund is converted from fees and burned, permanently removing the tokens from supply. That mechanism ties HYPE purchases and burns to trading activity and fee generation. Warwick’s concern is that a large share of fees going to external builders could reduce the amount available for those purchases. Holding HYPE does not give a token owner an equity stake in Hyperliquid Labs or another entity. The token has a maximum supply of 1 billion, with approximately 31% distributed to early users and approximately 23.8% allocated to core contributors. Core-contributor tokens were subject to a one-year lockup, with vesting expected to finish between 2027 and 2028. Participation in the Genesis Event occurred at each participant’s own risk, and the event was not a public sale of virtual assets. [Earlier reporting on the Assistance Fund’s HYPE burns]() detailed how protocol fees are converted into HYPE and removed from circulation. The scale of future purchases and burns depends on trading activity, fee generation and how fees are distributed. ## Links in this article - [Earlier reporting on the Assistance Fund’s HYPE burns](https://www.tokenpost.com/news/investing/26924)