DEX volumes soared in Q2 2025, with PancakeSwap’s volume rising 539% and Hyperliquid dominating perpetual futures with 73% market share, signaling a clear shift from centralized exchanges.
Crypto trading in the second quarter of 2025 witnessed an unprecedented shift as decentralized exchanges (DEXs) gained explosive momentum. Spot trading volumes on DEXs surged by over 25% from the previous quarter, while centralized exchanges (CEXs) saw nearly a 28% decline.
This unprecedented volume migration pushed the DEX-to-CEX trading ratio to a new all-time high of 0.23, according to a comprehensive report by CoinGecko.
Despite this surge in decentralized trading, centralized platforms continue to lead the market with $3.9 trillion in spot volume, compared to $877 billion posted by top DEXs.
However, the trend signals a growing appetite among traders to move toward decentralization, diminishing reliance on centralized intermediaries.
PancakeSwap Powers Binance Smart Chain to DEX Supremacy
PancakeSwap emerged as the standout DEX with an explosive 539% increase in spot trading volume to $392.6 billion in Q2, making it the largest decentralized exchange globally.
It accounted for 45% of all DEX trades this quarter, a feat largely driven by the launch of Binance Alpha in May, which routes transactions through PancakeSwap. Consequently, Binance Smart Chain (BSC) became the most popular blockchain for decentralized trading, surpassing Ethereum, Base, and Solana.
The surge in PancakeSwap’s activity was further bolstered by cross-chain swap capabilities introduced during the quarter. This innovation expanded its user base and solidified its dominance.
Meanwhile, DEXs on Solana, such as Orca, Meteora, and Raydium, suffered significant volume declines, reflecting a market rotation toward Binance Smart Chain and other competitors.
Perpetual DEXs Break Records with Hyperliquid Leading
Perpetual futures (perp) trading on decentralized platforms hit an all-time quarterly volume of $898 billion. Hyperliquid, running on its native layer 1 blockchain, dominated perp DEX trading with a 73% market share, generating $653 billion in volume.
This positions Hyperliquid as the eighth largest perp exchange overall, across both centralized and decentralized formats.
Other perp DEXs such as Aster, RabbitX, and EdgeX also posted growth in Q2. Aster notably doubled its volumes after launching a Pro mode. Conversely, dYdX, previously the top perp DEX, experienced steep volume declines, dropping to an average monthly volume of $5.3 billion from over $10 billion earlier in the year.
The perpetual market on centralized exchanges, meanwhile, softened slightly, showing a 3.6% decline quarter-over-quarter, affirming decentralized trading's growing appeal for derivative products.
Stay updated on the latest cryptocurrency news on our homepage.
Explore more in Latest News Category.
Related reading:
Key Topics
Crypto New Live
admin@cryptonewslive.org
DEX Trading Surges as CEX Volumes Fall in Q2 2025
DEX volumes jumped 25% in Q2 2025 as CEX volumes fell sharply, with PancakeSwap and Hyperliquid leading decentralized spot and perp trading growth.