The Midfield Battle of Perp DEX: The Declining, The Self-Rescuers, and The Latecomers
The article "Perp DEX Midfield Battle: The Declining, The Self-Rescuers, and The Newcomers" discusses the shifting landscape of decentralized perpetual exchanges (Perp DEX).
Hyperliquid saw a weekly trading volume of approximately $15 billion, driven largely by commodity contracts like crude oil, gold, and silver amid geopolitical tensions and market volatility. Meanwhile, GMX Labs is hiring a CEO, moving away from its founder-driven model, and dYdX's market share dropped from 73% in early 2023 to single digits by late 2024.
The decline of GMX and dYdX is attributed to several factors: reliance on token incentives that inflated trading volumes artificially, architectural limitations (e.g., GMX's liquidity pool model capping open interest, dYdX's costly migration to Cosmos), and misjudging key competitive factors like performance and market maker density.
Hyperliquid, in contrast, grew slowly without VC backing or token incentives. It built its own L1 chain with a fully on-chain order book, focusing on transparency to attract market makers. It strategically expanded into traditional assets only after establishing a robust ecosystem, enabling it to capture demand during events like the Iran crisis. It now leads with ~54% of open interest among top Perp DEXs, ahead of Aster (~15%).
The article concludes that the first generation of Perp DEXs is transitioning to professional management, while new opportunities lie in replacing traditional financial infrastructure, as Hyperliquid demonstrates by handling real-world demand.
marsbit03/27 09:31
