In September 2025, the total trading volume on decentralized derivatives exchanges (perp DEX) reached a record level, surpassing the $1 trillion mark for the first time. According to the analytical platform DeFiLlama, the total volume amounted to $1.143 trillion, demonstrating an increase of nearly 50% compared to August figures.
This is reported by Finway
Market Leaders and Top 5 Exchanges by Trading Volume
In September, the largest trading volumes were recorded on platforms such as Aster, Hyperliquid, and Lighter. The top five leaders over the last 30 days were:
- Aster — $493.6 billion
- Hyperliquid — $280.7 billion
- Lighter — $165.4 billion
- edgeX — $91.2 billion
- Jupiter — $21.7 billion
Outlook and Expert Opinions
Stefan Lutz, CEO of the centralized exchange BitMEX, shared his vision for the development of the derivatives market. In particular, he expressed doubt that the current leaders, including Hyperliquid and Aster, will be able to maintain their dominance throughout 2025.
“The incentive models used by these platforms are too fragile to withstand market fluctuations,” Lutz noted.
He emphasized that centralized exchanges, particularly Coinbase, have better capabilities to adapt to periods of volatility in the crypto market.