Grayscale Puts HYPE at the Top of Crypto Yield Rankings
Grayscale looks at DeFi tokens through payouts and revenue, not just price. HYPE and CAKE lead the rankings, while CRV and JUP score negative because of dilution.
Key Takeaways
- Grayscale published a ranking based on tokenholder yield and adjusted earnings yield for crypto assets.
- Hyperliquid (HYPE) tops the tokenholder yield ranking at 8.0%, while PancakeSwap (CAKE) leads the adjusted earnings yield ranking at 14.4%.
- Five of the ten tokens have a negative holder yield; Curve Finance (CRV) is at the bottom with -5.5%, and Jupiter (JUP) has 3.5% adjusted earnings yield but a negative tokenholder yield.
Grayscale has published a new ranking comparing crypto assets based on tokenholder yield and adjusted earnings yield. Hyperliquid (HYPE) tops the first list with 8.0%, while PancakeSwap (CAKE) leads the second list with 14.4%. The report shows that not just price, but also the underlying revenue and payouts to token holders are becoming more important in crypto valuation.
HYPE and CAKE on Top
In the tokenholder-yield ranking, Lighter (LIT) follows HYPE closely at 7.9%. After that come PancakeSwap, Aerodrome (AERO), and Uniswap (UNI). Grayscale calculates this yield by adding staking rewards and buybacks and then subtracting newly issued tokens.
That last part matters a lot. If more tokens are added than are flowing back through rewards or buybacks, holders can still end up with a weaker return. According to Grayscale, five of the ten tokens on the list even have a negative holder yield.
Dilution Pressures Returns
Curve Finance (CRV) is at the bottom with -5.5%, followed by Jupiter (JUP) at -2.6%. With Jupiter, the gap between the two measures stands out: adjusted earnings yield comes in at 3.5%, but tokenholder yield remains negative. That shows a protocol can be profitable without that automatically being good for the token itself.
Grayscale uses these two measures to look at crypto assets differently from Bitcoin, which the company mainly sees as digital gold. For many other tokens, the report says, cash flows can be a useful way to judge value. That lines up with a more traditional way of looking at investment products, where revenue and payouts matter more than narrative or market sentiment alone.
Why This Matters for Investors
For European crypto investors, this matters because the market is increasingly looking beyond price moves alone. With DeFi tokens, the gap between protocol revenue and what ultimately reaches token holders can be large. Grayscale's list makes that difference visible and shows why two tokens with similar activity can still score very differently.
