Hyperliquid has strengthened its position as the largest onchain perpetual futures venue, processing nearly $240 billion in trading volume over the latest 30-day period.
Data from DeFiLlama on September 17 showed Hyperliquid recording approximately $239.2 billion in perpetual futures volume, compared with $72.2 billion for second-ranked Aster. Lighter recorded about $54.9 billion, edgeX $42.3 billion and Variational $39.6 billion over the same rolling period. The figures are rolling 30-day totals rather than volume for a completed calendar month, meaning they change continuously as new trading activity enters and older activity leaves the calculation. Hyperliquid also recorded approximately $46.3 billion of perpetual volume over the latest seven days and $8.3 billion over 24 hours. Open interest — the value of outstanding derivatives positions — stood at roughly $7.1 billion.
Hyperliquid Extends Lead Over Perpetual DEX Rivals
Across perpetual DEX protocols tracked by DeFiLlama, total 30-day trading volume stood at approximately $661.4 billion. Hyperliquid therefore accounted for roughly 36% of the reported total by itself. Its $239 billion figure was more than three times Aster’s volume and exceeded the combined totals of Aster, Lighter and edgeX. Hyperliquid’s cumulative perpetual futures volume has now passed $5.3 trillion. The platform generated approximately $78.7 million in fees and $61.9 million in protocol revenue during the latest 30 days, according to DeFiLlama.
The exchange differs from many earlier decentralised derivatives platforms because its purpose-built Layer 1 blockchain combines an onchain central limit order book with relatively high transaction throughput. That structure aims to provide an experience closer to centralised derivatives exchanges while allowing trades and positions to settle through blockchain infrastructure. Perpetual futures themselves have become one of crypto’s largest trading products. Unlike conventional futures, perpetual contracts have no expiry date. Funding payments between long and short traders are used to keep their prices close to the underlying asset.
HIP-3 Expands Trading Beyond Crypto Assets
A growing portion of Hyperliquid’s activity now comes from HIP-3, its permissionless framework allowing third-party developers to deploy their own perpetual markets. HIP-3 markets represented only around 2% of Hyperliquid perpetual volume at the beginning of 2026 but had risen to nearly half of activity by July. TradeXYZ has been one of the largest contributors, offering perpetual contracts linked to the Nasdaq-100 and individual equities including Nvidia and Tesla.
The framework also enables markets referencing commodities, pre-IPO companies and other real-world assets. DeFiLlama Research estimated in August that Hyperliquid was clearing roughly $220 billion in perpetual volume per month as demand for HIP-3 markets expanded. That growth is increasingly attracting traditional financial companies. Kraken parent Payward said this week that it plans to use Hyperliquid’s HIP-3 infrastructure to launch perpetual futures for eligible U.S. clients through CFTC-regulated Bitnomial Exchange, subject to regulatory approval. The proposed arrangement would combine Hyperliquid’s public blockchain infrastructure with regulated U.S. clearing and customer-account structures.
Hyperliquid’s latest volume figures therefore reflect more than renewed crypto speculation. Its market mix is increasingly expanding into tokenized and real-world exposures that can trade continuously through blockchain-based derivatives. With approximately $239 billion of 30-day perpetual volume, Hyperliquid currently holds a substantial lead among onchain derivatives protocols. Whether it maintains that gap will depend increasingly on competition from Aster, Lighter and other venues, as well as whether HIP-3 can continue attracting trading activity outside the traditional crypto perpetual market.
