Main highlights:
- On-chain Perps volume will triple in 2025, reaching $1.8 trillion in October.
- Hyperliquid lost its monopoly, and Reiter and Astor matched in volume.
- Meme coins have soared to a total annual value of $12 trillion.
According to CryptoRank, on-chain perpetual contracts experienced significant growth in 2025, with trading activity increasing 3x year-on-year. This surge was made possible by intense competition and a surge in memecoin-driven liquidity rotation, with trading volume reaching a peak of $1.8 trillion in October.
PERP trading volume will more than triple in 2025
The sector has moved from a near-monopoly dominated by hyperliquids to a highly competitive one.
Primarily driven by liquidity rotation from meme coins, PERPS trading volume reached $1.8 trillion in October and returned to $864 million at the close. … pic.twitter.com/jl4t3x0xby
— CryptoRank.io (@CryptoRank_io) January 8, 2026
By the end of 2025, overall transaction value had settled at $864 billion. Platforms such as Jupiter, dYdX, and GMX, which have been considered frontrunners, have been overtaken by emerging platforms such as Lighter, Aster, and Hyperliquid. These newly launched platforms have gained comparable market share and brought significant changes to the decentralized derivatives landscape.
Rapid increase in transaction volume in 2025
According to data from DeFiLlama, the trading volume of perpetual decentralized exchanges (DEX) will grow significantly in 2025, tripling to approximately $12 trillion as mentioned above, with 65% of historical trading activity concentrated in the past year.
The momentum accelerated in the second half of the year, with trading volume of $5.74 trillion compared to $2.1 trillion in the first half. This is huge and was primarily driven by meme coins and growing DeFi participation.
October was the peak month, reflecting the growing speculative fever, but the pullback toward the end of the year indicated that market movements were stabilizing and becoming more mature.
Hyperliquid emerged as an early leader, consistently posting monthly transaction volumes of $175 billion to $248 billion, with a peak market share of 70%.
However, the competitive dynamics changed in the second half of the year as Reiter and Astor quickly gained traction, capturing 28% and 19% of recent volume, respectively, according to Artemis data.
Furthermore, Solana-based perpetual contracts alone generate $451.2 billion in trade value annually, demonstrating the growing importance of chain-specific ecosystems in the decentralized derivatives market.
Transition of market leaders
The persistent DEX market has gone from Hyperliquid’s near-monopoly to a tight three-way competition with Lighter and Aster matching current volumes.
Their growth, along with a liquidity rotation, temporarily dislodged early leaders such as Jupiter dYdX and GMX. Hyperliquid still holds over 50% share of the total market, open interest remains stable at $1.2 billion, and positive funding rates indicate continued demand.
Increasing competition has driven faster execution speeds, lower fees, and on-chain payments. These advances have attracted institutional interest through partnerships such as Hyperliquid’s deal with Anchorage Digital Circle.
While centralized exchanges continue to dominate, on-chain perpetual trading reached ~6% of total global crypto trading volume at its peak.
Main factors and peaks
Memecoin’s trading cycle has pushed massive amounts of liquidity into perpetual contracts, with monthly trading volumes exceeding $1 trillion many times.
Rising volatility during the altcoin season has increased demand for leverage and strengthened DEXs as core DeFi components for future lending and yield products.
October set a record of over $100 billion in trading volume of $1.8 trillion and daily surge. By the end of the year, activity had settled to $864 billion, but trading volumes were still well above 2024 levels.
Future prospects
Increasing competition is expected to bring deeper liquidity and more user-friendly features in 2026. While new leaders may expand into tokenized assets, Hyperliquid’s scale continues to set the standard for durability. Regulatory attention is likely to increase as trading volumes approach centralized exchange levels, but on-chain transparency remains a key benefit.
Traders are increasingly turning to DEXs for non-custodial efficiency, with open interest on major platforms reaching $15 billion by mid-year. This trend signals continued liquidity rotation as ecosystems like Solana compete for market leadership.
Also read: Coinbase integrates Solana DEX, opens access to 100 million users
