DEXs Capture 27.9% of Spot Market Trading Volumes in June 2025

Decentralized exchanges (DEXs) have made significant strides in the cryptocurrency market, capturing 27.9% of the total spot market trading volumes by June. This growth is notable given the modest 2.62% increase in the global cryptocurrency market capitalization, which was influenced by Middle Eastern tensions and energy supply concerns. While centralized exchanges (CEXs) have experienced stagnation in their trading volumes over the past year, DEXs have doubled theirs, highlighting their increasing dominance in the crypto trading landscape.

Several factors have driven the growth of DEXs. PancakeSwap, for instance, saw its market share surge from 16% in April to 42% by June, largely due to the Infinity update. This update expanded trading pairs in Alpha, optimized speed, reduced costs, and enhanced liquidity. In the Solana ecosystem, PumpSwap remained a popular choice, although platforms like Raydium, Orca, and Meteora faced challenges in maintaining momentum from earlier memecoin activities. Hyperliquid also experienced a significant increase in spot trading volume, rising from $6 billion to $10 billion, which intensified market competitiveness. The global rise in blockchain-based actions has deepened liquidity, making DEXs more attractive. A flexible regulatory framework has also facilitated the launch of new features, underscoring the importance of on-chain transactions.

In response to the growing popularity of DEXs, centralized exchanges have begun integrating hybrid CeDeFi models. These models leverage CEX liquidity pools while executing transactions on the blockchain, offering benefits such as minimal slippage, MEV protection, and rapid transaction confirmation. This integration is bridging the gap between decentralized and centralized trading environments. However, CEX trading volumes remain susceptible to factors such as individual investor behavior, economic trends, and volatility. Variability in oil prices combined with geopolitical tensions have dampened investor enthusiasm, while the adaptability of DEXs gives them a competitive advantage, signaling a potential decline in CEXs’ market control.

Key insights from these developments include the significant market share captured by DEXs, the rapid expansion of PancakeSwap's market share, the integration of hybrid CeDeFi models, and the impact of economic unpredictability on CEXs. These trends indicate an evolving crypto market where DEXs are broadening their influence amidst challenges faced by traditional CEXs. As the regulatory landscape remains fluid and technological advances continue, decentralized platforms are poised for sustained growth, offering novel prospects for digital asset trading.

In June 2025, the ratio of spot volumes on decentralized exchanges (DEXs) to centralized exchanges (CEXs) reached a new all-time high of 27.9%. This shift reflects a growing preference among traders for DEXs, which enable direct wallet-to-wallet transactions, giving users full control over their assets. Unlike CEXs, which rely on a central authority to manage trades, DEXs offer a more decentralized and transparent trading environment. This trend is further supported by the substantial annual trading volumes handled by DEXs on networks such as Solana, although these figures remain modest compared to the turnover on CEXs.

The increasing popularity of DEXs can be attributed to several factors. One key advantage is the enhanced liquidity provided by integrating the liquidity of multiple blockchains. This integration allows DEXs to offer a richer variety of trading pairs and higher liquidity depth, making them more attractive to traders. Additionally, the total value locked in the crypto space reached $375 billion, with Uniswap remaining the only DEX with a more significant share of value locked. Pure DeFi, on the other hand, has a smaller share of value locked at over $112 billion, still under the all-time high.

The regulatory landscape is also evolving to accommodate the growing use of DEXs. The Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF) brings crypto under global tax reporting standards akin to traditional finance, marking a crucial turning point for the industry. More than 60 countries have signed on to CARF, with plans to roll out in various regions by 2028. This framework requires platforms to track and report who is moving what, where, and how much, whether that’s exchanging tokens, cashing out, or spending. For the first time in history, non-custodial services and DEXs are on the hook for reporting, which will bring more checks, records, and accountability to the market.

The market implications of CARF are significant. For years, crypto operated in a gray zone, unobserved by regulators. CARF is finally bringing some structure to the market that has grown too big to stay in the dark. This framework erodes the core appeal of crypto's anonymity but lays the foundation for legitimacy. Institutional players have been wary of entering crypto markets due to regulatory uncertainty, but a standardized, global reporting reduces that caution. The big capital participation helps stabilize price volatility and makes tax reporting easier for everyday users.

The upfront compliance burden will be heavy for platforms, requiring legal advice, infrastructure, and staff training. Some platforms may even restrict services in jurisdictions with early adoption timelines or exit markets altogether. However, in the medium to long run, CARF may accelerate the industry’s professionalization. Legal clarity will invite multi-year investment, and users will benefit from stronger protections. Providers embracing the framework now will see a competitive advantage, while those who didn’t think about transparency might start to check if their go-to platforms are CARF-aware and seek guidance from crypto-native tax advisers.