In September 2025, trading volume on decentralized platforms (perp DEX) exceeded $1 trillion for the first time. The total figure was $1.143 trillion, up 49.5% from August, according to DeFiLlama.
The top 5 exchanges by trading volume over the past 30 days included:
- Aster — $493.6 bln
- Hyperliquid — $280.7 bln
- Lighter — $165.4 bln
- edgeX — $91.2 bln
- Jupiter — $21.7 bln
Stephan Lutz, CEO of centralized exchange BitMEX, said the current leaders among derivatives platforms, particularly Hyperliquid and Aster, “probably won’t be able to maintain dominance in 2025.”
He said the incentive models these platforms use are “too fragile” to withstand market fluctuations. Lutz believes that centralized exchanges like Coinbase are better prepared to weather cycles of volatility.
Recall, earlier we published a guide to activity in Aster and showed step-by-step instructions for interacting with the platform:
