Galaxy Digital Posts $200M Quarterly Loss—Did Hyperliquid Help Avoid New Crisis?

Galaxy Digital reported a tough start to the year as crypto prices fell and market values broadly contracted. In its first-quarter (Q1) results, the company reported a net loss of $216 million while the total crypto market capitalization slid by roughly 20% during the same period. 

Despite that difficult environment, Galaxy CEO Mike Novogratz said in an interview with Bloomberg that Hyperliquid (HYPE) helped the company avoid even worse outcomes.

In Galaxy’s Q1 2026 reporting, the company attributed the net loss primarily to the depreciation of digital asset prices over the quarter. The firm also posted an adjusted gross loss of $88 million, along with an adjusted EBITDA loss of $188 million. On a per-share basis, Galaxy reported diluted and adjusted EPS of $0.49. 

Even with the losses, Galaxy Digital ended the quarter with a solid balance sheet, including total equity of $2.8 billion and cash plus stablecoin holdings totaling $2.6 billion as of March 31, 2026. The company said it ended Q1 with approximately $5 billion in assets under management and $3.2 billion in assets under stake. 

At the same time, the firm reported that its asset management segment generated $69 million in net inflows across the quarter, suggesting demand still existed even as pricing pressure weighed on performance.

Novogratz’s comments focused on how Galaxy Digital managed risk and exposure while markets moved against crypto. He said the balance sheet “lost money because crypto prices were down,” but argued Galaxy “way outperformed” what would have happened if it had not taken steps to adjust its positions. 

According to Novogratz, the company cut some positions and shifted a significant portion of its level two exposure into Hyperliquid. He described Hyperliquid as one of the tokens he has discussed previously and indicated that the platform’s structure stands out in the sector.

In explaining the reasoning behind Galaxy’s support, Novogratz said he backed Hyperliquid “mostly because it’s got an economic model,” contrasting it with other tokens he described as being more “association tokens.” 

The executive added that Hyperliquid provides a way to look at what the future of crypto could look like, framing it as a more substantive approach compared with projects that function differently.

Galaxy Digital’s relationship with Hyperliquid goes beyond investment interest. The company has significant exposure to Hyperliquid’s native token, HYPE, and it also acts as a validator on the network. 

Novogratz also addressed Bitcoin’s (BTC) current price action. He noted that if Bitcoin manages to climb back above $100,000, it may still be difficult for the asset to sustain that level depending on broader economic conditions. 

He pointed out that to reach that price “you’re going to need a few things to happen,” and emphasized that easing from central banks would be central to the equation. However, he cautioned that macroeconomic pressures are unlikely to ease quickly, citing inflation concerns tied to current events. 

Galaxy Digital CEO referenced the war in Iran and said “we’ve got some pretty ugly inflation prints that are going to come through the pipeline,” adding that, in his view, “I don’t think the Fed does anything but sits and watches.”

Despite the quarterly loss, Galaxy Digital’s stock (trading under the ticker symbol GLXY) surged around 4% during Tuesday’s trading session, reaching $26 per share. Meanwhile, Hyperliquid’s native token saw a 5% loss and retraced to $39. 

Featured image from OpenArt, chart from TradingView.com