Hyperliquid Trading

Trade perpetual futures and spot tokens on Hyperliquid, a fully on-chain decentralized exchange. Orders are signed using this agent's EVM wallet and submitted directly to the Hyperliquid L1.

Prerequisites

Before trading, the wallet policy must be active. Load the wallet-policy skill and propose the standard wildcard policy (deny key export + allow *). This covers all Hyperliquid operations — USDC deposits, EIP-712 order signing, and withdrawals.

Runtime Model: Agent Tools vs Service Scripts (Important)

Hyperliquid has two execution modes. Use the right one for your workflow:

1) Agent tool mode (chat/task runtime)

Use hl_* tools directly in agent conversations and task scripts that run inside the Starchild tool runtime.

• Best for: human-in-the-loop operations, ad-hoc trades, monitoring flows, orchestration across multiple skills
• Strength: fastest integration with built-in verification workflow (check → execute → verify)
• Limitation: hl_* tools are tool-runtime capabilities, not normal Python imports

2) Service script mode (FastAPI/worker/bot process)

For standalone services (FastAPI bots, daemons, web backends), call Hyperliquid directly via the bundled client:

• Use skills/hyperliquid/client.py (HyperliquidClient)
• This is the recommended path for always-on bots (grid/maker/rebalancer) that should not depend on localhost agent-chat bridging
• hl_* tools are not importable as from ... import hl_order in plain Python services

Service Integration Pattern (recommended)

1. Keep strategy/state machine in your own service process (FastAPI, worker loop, queue consumer)
2. Use HyperliquidClient for order, cancel, open orders, fills, account
3. Persist bot state locally (orders, fills cursor, grid map, PnL)
4. Build admin APIs (/start, /stop, /status, /history) around that state

Minimal service example (direct client)

from skills.hyperliquid.client import HyperliquidClient

client = HyperliquidClient()
address = await client._get_address()  # wallet address used for read endpoints

# Query
account = await client.get_account_state(address)
opens = await client.get_open_orders(address)
fills = await client.get_user_fills(address)

# Place order (example)
res = await client.place_order(
    coin="BTC",
    is_buy=True,
    size=0.001,
    price=95000,
    order_type="limit",
)

# Cancel all BTC orders
await client.cancel_all("BTC")

Available Tools

Account & Market Info

Tool	What it does
hl_total_balance	Check how much you can trade with (use this for balance checks!)
hl_account	See your open positions and PnL
hl_balances	See your token holdings (USDC, HYPE, etc.)
hl_market	Get current prices for crypto or stocks
hl_orderbook	Check order book depth and liquidity
hl_fills	See recent trade fills and execution prices
hl_candles	Get price charts (1m, 5m, 1h, 4h, 1d)
hl_funding	Check funding rates for perps
hl_open_orders	See pending orders

Trading

Tool	What it does
hl_order	Buy or sell perps (crypto/stocks)
hl_spot_order	Buy or sell spot tokens
hl_tpsl_order	Place stop loss or take profit orders
hl_leverage	Set leverage (1x to asset max)
hl_cancel	Cancel a specific order
hl_cancel_all	Cancel all open orders
hl_modify	Change order price or size

Funds

Tool	What it does
hl_deposit	Add USDC from Arbitrum (min $5)
hl_withdraw	Send USDC to Arbitrum (1 USDC fee, ~5 min)
hl_transfer_usd	Move USDC between spot/perp (rarely needed)

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Quick Start

Just tell the agent what you want to trade - it handles everything automatically.

Examples:

User: "Buy $20 of Bitcoin with 5x leverage"
Agent: [checks balance → sets leverage → places order → reports fill]
Result: "✓ Bought 0.0002 BTC at $95,432 with 5x leverage. Position opened."

User: "Long NVIDIA with $50, 10x"
Agent: [auto-detects NVIDIA = xyz:NVDA → executes → verifies]
Result: "✓ Bought 0.25 NVDA at $198.50 with 10x leverage. Filled at $198.62."

User: "Sell my ETH position"
Agent: [checks position size → closes → reports PnL]
Result: "✓ Sold 0.5 ETH at $3,421. Realized PnL: +$12.50"

You don't need to:

• Understand account modes or fund transfers
• Check balances manually (agent does it)
• Calculate position sizes (agent does it)
• Verify fills (agent does it)

Just say what you want, the agent handles the rest.

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Agent Behavior Guidelines

🤖 As the agent, you should ALWAYS do these automatically (never ask the user):

1. Check available funds - Use hl_total_balance before EVERY trade to see total available margin
2. Detect asset type - Recognize if user wants crypto (BTC, ETH, SOL) or stocks/RWA (NVIDIA→xyz:NVDA, TESLA→xyz:TSLA)
3. Set leverage - Always call hl_leverage before placing orders (unless user specifies not to)
4. Verify fills - After placing ANY order, immediately call hl_fills to check if it filled
5. Report results - Tell user the outcome: filled price, size, and any PnL
6. Suggest risk management - For leveraged positions, remind users about stop losses or offer to set them

🎯 User just says: "buy X" or "sell Y" or "long Z with $N"

🔧 You figure out:

• Current balance (hl_total_balance)
• Asset resolution (crypto vs RWA)
• Leverage settings (hl_leverage)
• Order sizing (calculate from user's $ amount or size)
• Execution (hl_order)
• Verification (hl_fills)
• Final report to user

📊 Balance checking hierarchy:

• ✅ Use hl_total_balance - shows ACTUAL available margin regardless of account mode
• ❌ Don't use hl_account for balance - may show $0 even if funds available
• ❌ Don't use hl_balances for margin - only shows spot tokens

🚀 Be proactive, not reactive:

• Don't wait for user to ask "did it fill?" - check automatically
• Don't ask "should I check your balance?" - just do it
• Don't explain account modes - user doesn't care, just execute

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Tool Usage Examples

Check Account State

hl_account()              # Default crypto perps account
hl_account(dex="xyz")     # Builder dex (RWA/stock perps) account

Returns marginSummary (accountValue, totalMarginUsed, withdrawable) and assetPositions array with each position's coin, szi (signed size), entryPx, unrealizedPnl, leverage.

Important: Builder perps (xyz:NVDA, xyz:TSLA, etc.) have separate clearinghouses. Always check the correct dex when trading RWA/stock perps.

Check Spot Balances

hl_balances()

Returns balances array with coin, hold, total for USDC and all spot tokens.

Check Market Prices

hl_market()                  # All mid prices
hl_market(coin="BTC")        # BTC price + metadata (maxLeverage, szDecimals)

Side Parameter Convention (read this first)

All order tools (hl_order, hl_spot_order, hl_tpsl_order, hl_modify) use the same side parameter. Use "buy" or "sell" — these are the documented values and should be your default.

For safety, the tools also accept these aliases so a model guess doesn't reverse direction on a leveraged order:

• Buy family: "buy", "B", "bid", "long", "L", 1, true
• Sell family: "sell", "S", "A", "ask", "short", 0, false

An unrecognized value will fail the call with a clear error — the tool never defaults to sell (or buy) when side is ambiguous. This is intentional: silently reversing direction on a leveraged position is the worst failure mode.

Note: Hyperliquid's L1 wire protocol uses "B" and "A" internally, but the tool interface here is buy/sell. Stick to buy/sell in your calls and you will never be surprised.

Place a Perp Limit Order

hl_order(coin="BTC", side="buy", size=0.01, price=95000)

Places a GTC limit buy for 0.01 BTC at $95,000.

Place a Perp Market Order

hl_order(coin="ETH", side="sell", size=0.1)

Omitting price submits an IoC order at mid price +/- 3% slippage.

Parameter format behavior:

• Preferred: pass correct JSON types (size as number, reduce_only as boolean)
• Hyperliquid tools now include tolerant coercion for common LLM formatting mistakes:
  • numeric strings like "0.01" → 0.01
  • boolean strings like "true"/"false" → true/false
  • integer strings like "5"/"5.0" → 5
• Invalid/empty/non-finite values still fail with explicit validation errors

Place a Post-Only Order

hl_order(coin="BTC", side="buy", size=0.01, price=94000, order_type="alo")

ALO (Add Liquidity Only) = post-only. Rejected if it would immediately fill.

Practical guardrail for bots: If your ALO price is too close to mid (often within ~0.1% on liquid pairs), Hyperliquid may reject it. For market-making/grid bots, compute current mid first and skip or shift levels that sit inside your no-cross buffer zone.

Place a Stop Loss Order

hl_tpsl_order(coin="BTC", side="sell", size=0.01, trigger_px=90000, tpsl="sl")

Automatically sells 0.01 BTC if the price drops to $90,000. Executes as market order when triggered.

For a limit order when triggered (instead of market):

hl_tpsl_order(coin="BTC", side="sell", size=0.01, trigger_px=90000, tpsl="sl", is_market=false, limit_px=89900)

Place a Take Profit Order

hl_tpsl_order(coin="ETH", side="sell", size=0.5, trigger_px=3500, tpsl="tp")

Automatically sells 0.5 ETH if the price rises to $3,500. Executes as market order when triggered.

Close a Perp Position

hl_order(coin="BTC", side="sell", size=0.01, reduce_only=true)

Use reduce_only=true to ensure it only closes, never opens a new position.

Place a Spot Order

hl_spot_order(coin="HYPE", side="buy", size=10, price=25.0)

Spot orders use the same interface — just specify the token name.

Cancel an Order

hl_cancel(coin="BTC", order_id=12345678)

Get order_id from hl_open_orders.

Cancel All Orders

hl_cancel_all()              # Cancel everything
hl_cancel_all(coin="BTC")    # Cancel only BTC orders

Modify an Order

hl_modify(order_id=12345678, coin="BTC", side="buy", size=0.02, price=94500)

Set Leverage

hl_leverage(coin="BTC", leverage=10)               # 10x cross margin
hl_leverage(coin="ETH", leverage=5, cross=false)    # 5x isolated margin

Transfer USDC (rarely needed)

hl_transfer_usd(amount=1000, to_perp=true)     # Spot → Perp
hl_transfer_usd(amount=500, to_perp=false)      # Perp → Spot

Note: Usually not needed - funds are automatically shared. Only use if you get an error saying you need to transfer.

Withdraw USDC to Arbitrum

hl_withdraw(amount=100)                              # Withdraw to own wallet
hl_withdraw(amount=50, destination="0xABC...")        # Withdraw to specific address

Fee: 1 USDC deducted by Hyperliquid. Processing takes ~5 minutes.

Deposit USDC from Arbitrum

hl_deposit(amount=500)

Sends USDC from the agent's Arbitrum wallet to the Hyperliquid bridge contract. Minimum deposit: 5 USDC. Requires USDC balance on Arbitrum.

Get Candles

hl_candles(coin="BTC", interval="1h", lookback=48)

Intervals: 1m, 5m, 15m, 1h, 4h, 1d. Lookback in hours.

Check Funding Rates

hl_funding()                 # All predicted fundings
hl_funding(coin="BTC")       # BTC predicted + 24h history

Get Recent Fills

hl_fills(limit=10)

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Coin vs RWA Resolution

When a user asks to trade a ticker, you need to determine whether it's a native crypto perp (use plain name) or an RWA/stock perp (use xyz:TICKER prefix).

Decision Workflow

1. Known crypto → use plain name: "BTC", "ETH", "SOL", "DOGE", "HYPE", etc.
2. Known stock/commodity/forex → use xyz: prefix: "xyz:NVDA", "xyz:TSLA", "xyz:GOLD", etc.
3. Unsure → resolve with tool calls:
   • First try hl_market(coin="X") — if it returns a price, it's a crypto perp
   • If not found, try hl_market(dex="xyz") to list all RWA markets and search the results
   • Use whichever returns a match

Common RWA Categories (all use xyz: prefix)

Category	Examples
US Stocks	xyz:NVDA, xyz:TSLA, xyz:AAPL, xyz:MSFT, xyz:AMZN, xyz:GOOG, xyz:META, xyz:TSM
Commodities — Metals	xyz:GOLD, xyz:SILVER, xyz:COPPER, xyz:PLATINUM, xyz:PALLADIUM, xyz:ALUMINIUM
Commodities — Energy	xyz:CL (WTI), xyz:BRENTOIL, xyz:NATGAS, xyz:TTF (EU Gas)
Commodities — Agriculture	xyz:CORN, xyz:WHEAT
Commodities — Other	xyz:URANIUM
Indices	xyz:SPY
Forex	xyz:EUR, xyz:GBP, xyz:JPY

If a user says "buy NVDA" or "trade GOLD", use xyz:NVDA / xyz:GOLD. These are real-world assets, not crypto.

⚠️ HIP-3 Commodity Price Lookup

All 13 commodity markets are HIP-3 builder-deployed perps. Their symbols use the xyz: prefix (e.g. xyz:GOLD, xyz:CL), NOT standard formats like XAU, XAG, or WTI.

Full commodity list: GOLD, SILVER, COPPER, PLATINUM, PALLADIUM, ALUMINIUM, CL (WTI crude), BRENTOIL, NATGAS, TTF (EU gas), CORN, WHEAT, URANIUM.

Key gotcha: HIP-3 assets are NOT included in allMids (the standard price feed). This means:

• hl_market(coin="xyz:GOLD") may return no price or fail to find the asset
• hl_market(dex="xyz") lists all builder markets but may not include mid prices

The reliable way to get commodity prices is hl_candles:

# Get latest gold price (use 1h candles, lookback=24 for 24h data)
hl_candles(coin="xyz:GOLD", interval="1h", lookback=24)

# Get latest copper price
hl_candles(coin="xyz:COPPER", interval="1h", lookback=24)

# Get latest silver price
hl_candles(coin="xyz:SILVER", interval="1h", lookback=24)

The close field of the most recent candle = current price. The oldest candle's open vs latest close gives 24h change.

Prefixed Name — Same Tools

All existing tools work with xyz:TICKER — just pass the prefixed coin name:

hl_market(coin="xyz:NVDA")                                    # Check NVIDIA stock perp price
hl_market(dex="xyz")                                           # List ALL available RWA/stock perps
hl_orderbook(coin="xyz:NVDA")                                 # Check liquidity
hl_leverage(coin="xyz:NVDA", leverage=3)                      # Set leverage (auto-isolated)
hl_order(coin="xyz:NVDA", side="buy", size=0.5, price=188)    # Limit buy 0.5 NVDA
hl_order(coin="xyz:TSM", side="buy", size=1)                  # Market buy 1 TSM
hl_cancel(coin="xyz:NVDA", order_id=12345678)                 # Cancel order

Example: User Says "Buy NVIDIA"

1. Recognize NVIDIA = stock → use xyz:NVDA
2. hl_market(coin="xyz:NVDA") — Check current price, leverage limits
3. hl_leverage(coin="xyz:NVDA", leverage=3) — Set leverage (builder perps use isolated margin)
4. hl_order(coin="xyz:NVDA", side="buy", size=0.5, price=188) — Place limit buy
5. hl_fills() — Check if filled

Notes

• Builder perps (HIP-3) use isolated margin only — hl_leverage handles this automatically
• The dex prefix (e.g. xyz) identifies which builder deployed the perp
• All tools (candles, orderbook, funding, etc.) work the same way with prefixed names

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Common Workflows

Query Commodity Prices

User: "What's the gold price?" or "Show me commodity prices" or "Oil price?"

Name → Symbol mapping:

• Metals: GOLD→xyz:GOLD, SILVER→xyz:SILVER, COPPER→xyz:COPPER, PLATINUM→xyz:PLATINUM, PALLADIUM→xyz:PALLADIUM, ALUMINIUM→xyz:ALUMINIUM
• Energy: WTI/Crude Oil→xyz:CL, Brent→xyz:BRENTOIL, Natural Gas→xyz:NATGAS, EU Gas→xyz:TTF
• Agriculture: Corn→xyz:CORN, Wheat→xyz:WHEAT
• Other: Uranium→xyz:URANIUM

Steps:

1. Map commodity name → HIP-3 symbol using the table above
2. hl_candles(coin="xyz:GOLD", interval="1h", lookback=24) — Get 24h of hourly candles
3. Current price = last candle's close
4. 24h change = (last_close - first_open) / first_open * 100
5. Repeat for each commodity as needed

Do NOT use hl_market() for commodities — HIP-3 assets are not in allMids. Always use hl_candles.

Liquidity note: CL (WTI) and BRENTOIL have the highest volume. ALUMINIUM, URANIUM, CORN, WHEAT, TTF may have zero or very low liquidity — warn the user before trading these.

Trade Crypto Perps (BTC, ETH, SOL, etc.)

User: "Buy BTC" or "Long ETH with 5x"

Agent workflow:

1. hl_total_balance() → Check available funds
2. hl_leverage(coin="BTC", leverage=5) → Set leverage
3. hl_order(...) → Place order
4. hl_fills() → Verify fill and report result

Trade Stocks/RWA (NVIDIA, TESLA, GOLD, etc.)

User: "Buy NVIDIA" or "Short TESLA"

Agent workflow:

1. Detect asset type → Convert "NVIDIA" to "xyz:NVDA"
2. hl_total_balance() → Check available funds
3. hl_leverage(coin="xyz:NVDA", leverage=10) → Set leverage
4. hl_order(coin="xyz:NVDA", ...) → Place order
5. hl_fills() → Verify fill and report result

Close Positions

User: "Close my BTC position"

Agent workflow:

1. hl_account() → Get current position size
2. hl_order(coin="BTC", side="sell", size=X, reduce_only=true) → Close position
3. hl_fills() → Report PnL

Grid / Market-Making Bot Loop (service mode)

For always-on bots running inside FastAPI/worker services:

1. Read open orders via get_open_orders(address)
2. Read fills via get_user_fills(address)
3. Use fills as source of truth for "order executed" events
4. On fill:
   • buy fill → place paired sell at next grid level
   • sell fill → place paired buy at previous grid level
5. Keep periodic reconciliation: local state vs exchange open orders

Important: Do not treat "order disappeared from open orders" as guaranteed fill. It can also mean cancel/reject/expired. Always confirm with get_user_fills (or get_order_status when needed).

Spot Trading

User: "Buy 100 HYPE tokens"

Agent workflow:

1. hl_total_balance() → Check available USDC
2. hl_spot_order(coin="HYPE", side="buy", size=100) → Buy tokens
3. hl_balances() → Verify purchase

Deposit/Withdraw Funds

Deposit: User: "Deposit $500 USDC to Hyperliquid" Agent: hl_deposit(amount=500) → Done

Withdraw: User: "Withdraw $100 to my Arbitrum wallet" Agent: hl_withdraw(amount=100) → Done (5 min, 1 USDC fee)

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Order Types

Type	Parameter	Behavior
Limit (GTC)	order_type="limit"	Rests on book until filled or cancelled
Market (IoC)	omit price	Immediate-or-Cancel at mid +/- 3% slippage
Post-Only (ALO)	order_type="alo"	Rejected if it would cross the spread
Fill-or-Kill	order_type="ioc" + explicit price	Fill immediately at price or cancel
Stop Loss	hl_tpsl_order with tpsl="sl"	Triggers when price drops to limit losses
Take Profit	hl_tpsl_order with tpsl="tp"	Triggers when price rises to lock gains

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Stop Loss & Take Profit Orders

Stop loss and take profit orders are trigger orders that automatically execute when the market reaches a specified price level. Use these to manage risk and lock in profits without monitoring positions 24/7.

How They Work

1. Order Placement: Place a dormant trigger order with a trigger price
2. Monitoring: Order sits inactive, watching the market price
3. Trigger: When market price reaches trigger_px, order activates
4. Execution: Order executes immediately (as market or limit order)

Stop Loss (SL)

Use case: Limit losses on a position by automatically exiting if price moves against you.

Example: You're long BTC at $95,000 and want to exit if it drops below $90,000.

hl_tpsl_order(coin="BTC", side="sell", size=0.1, trigger_px=90000, tpsl="sl")

• trigger_px=90000: Activates when BTC drops to $90k
• side="sell": Closes your long position
• tpsl="sl": Marks this as a stop loss order
• Default: Executes as market order when triggered (instant exit)

Take Profit (TP)

Use case: Lock in gains by automatically exiting when price reaches your profit target.

Example: You're long ETH at $3,000 and want to take profit at $3,500.

hl_tpsl_order(coin="ETH", side="sell", size=1.0, trigger_px=3500, tpsl="tp")

• trigger_px=3500: Activates when ETH rises to $3,500
• side="sell": Closes your long position
• tpsl="tp": Marks this as a take profit order
• Default: Executes as market order when triggered (instant exit)

Market vs Limit Execution

By default, TP/SL orders execute as market orders when triggered (instant fill, possible slippage).

For more control, use a limit order when triggered:

hl_tpsl_order(
    coin="BTC",
    side="sell",
    size=0.1,
    trigger_px=90000,
    tpsl="sl",
    is_market=false,
    limit_px=89900
)

• trigger_px=90000: Activates at $90k
• is_market=false: Use limit order (not market)
• limit_px=89900: Limit price when triggered ($89,900)

Trade-off: Limit orders avoid slippage but may not fill in fast-moving markets.

Short Positions

For short positions, reverse the side parameter:

Stop loss on short (exit if price rises):

hl_tpsl_order(coin="BTC", side="buy", size=0.1, trigger_px=98000, tpsl="sl")

Take profit on short (exit if price drops):

hl_tpsl_order(coin="BTC", side="buy", size=0.1, trigger_px=92000, tpsl="tp")

Best Practices

1. Always use reduce_only=true (default) - ensures TP/SL only closes positions, never opens new ones
2. Match size to position - TP/SL size should equal or be less than your position size
3. Set both TP and SL - protect both upside (take profit) and downside (stop loss)
4. Account for volatility - don't set stops too tight or they'll trigger on normal price swings
5. Check open orders - use hl_open_orders to verify TP/SL orders are active

Common Mistakes

Mistake	Problem	Solution
Wrong side	SL buys instead of sells	Long position → side="sell" for SL/TP
Size too large	TP/SL opens new position	Set size ≤ position size, use reduce_only=true
Trigger = limit	Confusion about prices	trigger_px = when to activate, limit_px = execution price
No SL on leverage	Liquidation risk	Always set stop loss on leveraged positions

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Perps vs Spot

Aspect	Perps	Spot
Tool	hl_order	hl_spot_order
Leverage	Yes (up to asset max)	No
Funding	Paid/received every hour	None
Short selling	Yes (native)	Must own tokens to sell
Check positions	hl_account	hl_balances

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Risk Management

• Always check account state before trading — know your margin usage and existing positions
• Set leverage explicitly before opening new positions (default may vary)
• Use reduce_only when closing to avoid accidentally opening the opposite direction
• Monitor funding rates — high positive funding means longs are expensive to hold
• Start with small sizes — Hyperliquid has minimum order sizes per asset (check szDecimals)
• Post-only (ALO) orders save on fees (maker vs taker rates)
• Check fills after market orders — IoC orders may partially fill or not fill at all

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Common Errors

Error	Fix
"Unknown perp asset"	Check coin name. Crypto: "BTC", "ETH". Stocks: "xyz:NVDA", "xyz:TSLA"
"Insufficient margin"	Use hl_total_balance to check funds. Reduce size or add more USDC
"Order must have minimum value of $10"	Increase size. Formula: size × price ≥ $10
"Size too small"	BTC min is typically 0.001. Check asset's szDecimals
"Order would cross"	ALO order rejected. Use regular limit order instead
"User or wallet does not exist"	Deposit USDC first with hl_deposit(amount=500)
"Minimum deposit is 5 USDC"	Hyperliquid requires at least $5 per deposit
"Policy violation"	Load wallet-policy skill and propose wildcard policy
"Action disabled when unified account is active"	Transfers blocked in unified mode (default). Just place orders directly
"'side' must be one of: buy/sell ..."	You passed an unrecognized direction. Use "buy" or "sell". See Side Parameter Convention above