DEX activity declined in April, extending the overall downward trend. Liquidity drains and volume declines affected both spot and futures markets.
DEX activity declined again in April, extending the overall downward trend since October 2025. Trading on DEXs reflects the cryptocurrency sentiment of native traders and their general interest in long-tail assets.
According to data from DeFi Llama, total DEX volume reached $166.78 billion in April, the lowest level since August 2024.
DEX trading is currently down approximately 59% compared to its peak in October 2025, reflecting weaker sentiment in the crypto market overall.
As of early 2025, DEX trading volume is still higher than January, February, and March performance over the past five years. However, the DEX trading volume in April was below the 2025 and 2024 levels, and the expansion trend stalled.
DEX activity accounted for 14.57% of intensive trading, which is within normal range. This ratio has been maintained due to the exodus of traders from centralized markets.
Why was liquidity leaked from DEX trading?
The main reason for the slowdown is Uniswap and PancakeSwap, the two most widely used DEXs. Traders move to hyperliquid, HIP-3Gain exposure to perpetual futures in stocks, gold, and oil.
The idea of decentralized trading remains, but activity has moved from token swaps to other markets. The hype around the token diminished and the meme no longer attracted speculative trading. Some DEXs were still used for swaps between the most liquid crypto assets and stablecoins.
DEX activity also reflects more stagnant crypto sentiment. Traders no longer expect the hype to lift all tokens. Instead, only certain assets rose, supported by market makers and deliberate liquidity providers.
Overall, liquidity providers have also abandoned DEX pairs due to the risk of lag pulls and token crashes. Even though stablecoin supply was near its peak, it was not actually flowing into the DEX.
BNB Chain and Ethereum have also seen significant liquidity outflows over the past month, according to Artemis data. Some of the inflow funds have moved to hyperliquid and polymarkets, and are still being replaced by DEX speculation.
The DEX also lost inflow of new tokens from meme platforms and token sales. A slowdown in token sales and ICOs led to a decline in new listings. More meme tokens from Pump.fun will also remain in the “trench” and will not migrate to exchanges.
DeFi hacks affected trust in DEXs
DEX activity slowed for a month with record numbers. hacking. Because smart contracts are generally vulnerable, DEXs were considered potentially unsafe destinations.
Liquidity pools are also a common target for exploitation, with flawed smart contracts leading to liquidity depletion and token theft.
Most of the outflows from exchanges occurred on EVM compatible networks and Ethereum. Solana DEX activity bucked the trend but could not offset the overall outflow. Meteora replaces Raydium and PumpSwap as the main exchange.
Solana survived the DEX outflow due to aggressive USDC mints that boosted the Meteora liquidity pair. The absence of any hacks against Solana also further boosted traders’ confidence.
