DEX Perpetual Trading Volume Reaches New Heights
The volume of perpetual contracts traded on decentralized exchanges (DEXs) surged above $1 trillion in November, marking the second consecutive month with this significant trading volume. This achievement occurred despite prevailing uncertainties in the crypto market during November. October also saw a substantial $1.37 trillion in perpetual trading volume.
Perpetual contracts are experiencing increasing popularity on decentralized exchanges, as indicated by on-chain data. Platforms such as Hyperliquid, Lighter, and Aster recorded notable volume in October and November when compared to preceding months.
Data from DefiLlama, an open-source analytics platform for decentralized finance (DeFi), reveals that November was the second consecutive month with $1.317 trillion in trading volume for perpetual contracts. This figure follows a surge in trading activity in October, which propelled the volume to a new all-time high, surpassing $1 trillion. The volume of perpetual contracts processed by DEXs in October stood at $1.37 trillion, a significant increase from the $759 billion recorded in August and $564.622 million in July.
This substantial rise in volume suggests growing investor confidence in decentralized on-chain platforms. The notable performance of newer DEX protocols, such as Lighter and Aster, indicates that traders are increasingly shifting away from centralized exchanges.
Leading DEX Protocols in Perpetual Trading
According to the data, Lighter, a DEX operating on the Ethereum network, leads the pack with a total trading volume of $290.605 billion recorded in the last 30 days and $8.882 billion in the last 24 hours. The protocol secured the top spot after ranking second to Hyperliquid in October, which recorded a trading volume of $265.4 billion. Hyperliquid had ranked first in October with a trading volume of $317.6 billion.
Aster has also emerged as a strong contender, displacing Hyperliquid to claim the second spot. Aster has recorded a trading volume exceeding $248 billion in the last 30 days and $7.414 billion in the last 24 hours. In October, the exchange recorded $177.6 billion, placing it third behind Hyperliquid and Lighter. Hyperliquid now ranks third, with a 30-day trading volume of $237.86 billion and a 24-hour volume of $6.316 billion.
EdgeX also gained prominence, ranking fourth with a 30-day trading volume of $163.533 billion and $4.088 billion in the last 24 hours. Apex Protocol follows, with $80.337 billion in the last 30 days and $2.822 billion in the preceding 24 hours. The single-day perpetual contracts trading volume for November peaked at $68.642 billion, representing a $10 billion decline from the previous month's $78.014 billion.
Centralized Exchanges Maintain Dominance in Crypto Futures Market
The significant shift in investor confidence towards DEXs is attributed to several factors. These include the emergence of new-generation platforms offering more user-friendly interfaces and trading incentives such as airdrops and point-awarding programs. These incentives have likely been instrumental in attracting crypto traders who previously conducted most of their trading activities on centralized exchanges.
Furthermore, numerous scandals involving centralized exchanges, such as security breaches and evolving regulatory scrutiny, may have positioned decentralized exchanges as more appealing alternatives for trading activities. Many traders now perceive decentralized exchanges as safer platforms that allow them to retain custody of their funds and offer earlier access to new tokens.
Despite the growth of DEXs, centralized exchanges still hold the lead in crypto futures' open interest and overall trading volume. Data from Coingecko indicates that centralized exchanges have accumulated a total derivatives volume of $570 billion in the last 24 hours, in contrast to the $39.313 billion observed on decentralized exchanges during the same period. Binance (Futures) leads with $58.4 billion in 24-hour trading volume, followed by Bybit (Futures) with $20.1 billion.
This development follows Metamask's recent announcement of its partnership with Hyperliquid. This collaboration aims to offer traders perpetual futures trading directly on the Ethereum wallet's mobile application. The announcement also detailed plans to offer rewards to incentivize traders to utilize this new feature.