October was a record month for decentralized derivatives and stablecoin activity.
Hyperliquid, the fast-rising perpetual DEX, led the field with $303 billion in trading volume, topping all decentralized competitors despite not running any active points or rewards program.
Close behind were Lighter and Aster, posting $272 billion and $262 billion respectively.
Still, Hyperliquid remains unmatched in one critical area, open interest (OI). Its OI surpasses that of all other perp DEXs combined, reflecting a deep, loyal trading base that isn’t chasing incentives but sticking with the platform’s liquidity and performance.
Hyperliquid led by perp DEX volume in October with $303B
But, Lighter and Aster follow closely with $272B and $262B.
Still, Hyperliquid remains unmatched in Open Interest – its OI exceeds that of all other perp DEXs combined.
Considering it comes with no active points… pic.twitter.com/ypGYfG9UcN
— CryptoRank.io (@CryptoRank_io) November 5, 2025
Perp DEXs Smash $1.2 Trillion in Monthly Volume
In October 2025, total decentralized perpetual exchange (Perp DEX) trading volume hit a record $1.2 trillion, up roughly 62% month-over-month from September’s $739 billion.
That’s not just a jump, it’s a statement. The growth shows how decentralized derivatives are gaining legitimacy, even as centralized exchanges face tighter regulations.
Lighter emerged as the surprise market leader, capturing 27% of total volume, or roughly $324 billion in trades. Hyperliquid, though leading early in raw transaction data, saw its market share drop from 33% in September to 10% in October, closing the month with around $120 billion in verifiable trading volume.
Other major players, Aster, EdgeX, Pacifica, and ApeX, collectively captured the remaining 63% of market share, or about $756 billion in total.
Aster’s numbers remain under debate, with some data analysts questioning wash trading activity, which could overstate its real transaction volume.
The spike in trading came amid heavy market volatility, pushing daily peak volume to $78 billion on October 10, the highest single-day figure ever recorded for on-chain derivatives.
Hyperliquid’s Strength Is in Its Core Traders
Despite its declining share, Hyperliquid’s lead in open interest is untouched.
No other DEX even comes close.
This is what sets Hyperliquid apart, volume can be inflated through incentives, but open interest reflects real capital staying on the platform. It represents traders who keep positions open and trust the protocol long-term.
The fact that Hyperliquid holds this lead without a points or airdrop program speaks volumes about its user retention and product-market fit.
Its traders aren’t there for farming, they’re there for execution.
Ethereum Mainnet Stablecoin Volumes Break Record
While Perp DEXs were making history, Ethereum’s stablecoin markets also set a new benchmark.
In October 2025, on-chain stablecoin volume on Ethereum reached $2.82 trillion, surpassing September’s record of $1.94 trillion, a 45% month-over-month increase.
Breaking it down:
- USDC dominated with $1.62 trillion in transactions.
- USDT followed with $895.5 billion.
- DAI accounted for around $136 billion.
Stablecoin transfers on Ethereum now generate 65%–70% of all on-chain protocol revenue, making them the largest revenue source across decentralized finance.
Behind the surge?
Several key catalysts:
- The Circle IPO, which renewed institutional confidence in USDC.
- The passing of the Genius Act, creating clearer legal frameworks for digital assets.
- The rise of yield-bearing DeFi products, drawing massive inflows as traders park capital in stablecoin-based strategies while waiting for market bottoms.
All this positioned Ethereum as DeFi’s settlement backbone, a role once only imagined in crypto’s early days.
Ethereum DEXs Also Surge
It wasn’t just derivatives and stablecoins making waves.
Ethereum-based decentralized exchanges (DEXs) also posted record numbers.
Total DEX trading volume for October reached $613.3 billion, a new all-time high.
- Uniswap led with $165 billion in volume.
- PancakeSwap followed with $96 billion.
DEX market share of total crypto trading rose from 18.8% in September to 19.8% in October. That’s a nearly 1% market share gain in just one month, huge for a sector once seen as niche compared to centralized exchanges.
This growth marks the steady institutionalization of on-chain trading, liquidity, speed, and compliance tools are now catching up with centralized peers.
What the Numbers Really Mean
Taken together, these records reveal a clear trend: on-chain finance is scaling.
Perpetual DEXs like Hyperliquid and Lighter are no longer experiments, they’re ecosystems moving billions daily. Ethereum, meanwhile, has become the de facto settlement layer of global crypto liquidity.
On-chain stablecoin velocity shows that traders, institutions, and DAOs now treat Ethereum as the crypto banking system, where assets settle, capital flows, and fees generate consistent revenue.
In October, Perp DEX trading volume set a $1.2 trillion record, while ETH mainnet stablecoin volume also hit a record $2.82 trillion.
In October 2025, the total trading volume of decentralized perpetual exchanges (Perp DEXs) reached a record $1.2 trillion.
> Month-over-Month…
— OKX Ventures (@OKX_Ventures) November 5, 2025
The Bigger Structural Shift
After years of competition between DEXs, October 2025 marks a milestone.
The entire decentralized derivatives ecosystem, once reliant on liquidity incentives and short-term campaigns, is now proving sustainable without constant rewards.
Liquidity is deepening. Traders are staying. And capital is rotating from speculation into structured strategies like delta-neutral yield farming, basis trades, and cross-margin setups.
At the same time, Ethereum’s stability as an infrastructure layer shows that DeFi has entered its institutional era.
Stablecoin rails now connect funds, protocols, and liquidity providers globally.
The effect: on-chain finance is starting to look like a parallel financial system, not a shadow one.
What’s Next for DEX Growth
Looking ahead, OKX Ventures and other DeFi-focused funds are watching three major trends:
1. Cross-chain integration – making liquidity and UX seamless across ecosystems like Ethereum, Solana, and Layer 2s.
2. Capital efficiency – optimizing margin use, position management, and automated hedging tools for on-chain derivatives.
3. Institutional compliance – ensuring DEXs can meet audit, reporting, and regulatory standards for large funds entering crypto.
These trends will define the next phase of decentralized trading, where scalability and compliance meet.
October 2025 was a month of records, $1.2 trillion in Perp DEX volume, $2.82 trillion in Ethereum stablecoin settlements, and $613 billion in DEX trades.
Hyperliquid may have lost share to new rivals like Lighter, but its unmatched open interest shows it commands the trust of serious traders.
Meanwhile, Ethereum quietly cemented its role as crypto’s banking and settlement layer, powering stablecoins, DeFi, and now derivatives at scale.
The takeaway is simple: decentralized finance isn’t testing limits anymore, it’s breaking them.
Disclosure: This is not trading or investment advice. Always do your research before buying any cryptocurrency or investing in any services.
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