Bot Glitch, Not Whale Activity, Sends HYPE Token to $98 on Lighter
October 28, 2025
A sudden surge that pushed Hyperliquid’s HYPE token close to $100 on decentralized exchange Lighter wasn’t the work of a whale — it was the result of a faulty trading bot, exposing the ongoing challenges decentralized exchanges face in maintaining both transparency and usability during abnormal market activity.
The price spike, which saw HYPE trading at an enormous premium to global averages, quickly caught traders’ attention and fueled speculation about heavy buying. However, Lighter later confirmed that the rally stemmed from an automated trading error, not intentional market manipulation.
In a post on X, Lighter explained that the bot had aggressively swept through the HYPE order book, executing trades at successively higher prices in a low-liquidity environment. Despite the rapid price escalation, no users were liquidated and the exchange remained stable, according to the team.
The incident left Lighter’s candlestick charts distorted, prompting the platform to remove the affected data from its main interface to ensure a more accurate and readable trading view. While the anomaly is no longer visible on the front end, all transaction data remains verifiable on-chain, consistent with decentralized transparency standards.
Lighter clarified that while blockchain records are immutable, its interface is designed to optimize the trading experience, and other front ends using its protocol may choose to present the raw data differently.
The episode highlights a key tension for decentralized exchanges — how to balance full data visibility with functional usability when unexpected trading errors occur.
Still, not everyone supported Lighter’s decision. Crypto analyst Duo Nine criticized the move to hide the abnormal price activity, suggesting it conceals underlying liquidity weaknesses:
“You should admit your order books are illiquid rather than censoring them to hide the issue. By doing this, you’re misleading users. What happens when liquidations actually occur?”
The glitch ultimately serves as a reminder of DEX vulnerabilities, showing how even a single automated error can test the limits of transparency, design, and trust in decentralized trading platforms.
