Hyperliquid Dominates 70% of On-Chain Perpetual Contract Market in March 2025

Hyperliquid has established itself as the leading platform in the on-chain perpetual contract market, securing nearly 70% of the market share by March 2025. This dominance is evidenced by an impressive trading volume of $175 billion for the month, demonstrating the platform's growing influence and appeal to traders.

The success of Hyperliquid can be attributed to several key factors. Firstly, the platform offers a trading experience that closely resembles that of centralized exchanges, providing faster, simpler, and more modern trading options. This has attracted a significant number of professional traders who prioritize efficiency and reliability. Secondly, Hyperliquid's self-developed blockchain has been instrumental in its success. The blockchain offers faster transaction speeds, reliability, and low latency, which are crucial for professional traders. These features have enabled Hyperliquid to outperform other protocols and chains that were once industry standards.

The shift in the perpetual contract market is not only about the protocols but also about the chains that execute transactions. By March 2025, Ethereum and Arbitrum's share of perpetual contract trading volume had dropped to 11.8%, a significant decrease from their combined market dominance of over 65% in January 2024. This decline highlights the rise of newer, faster execution layers like Hyperliquid's blockchain, which has become the preferred environment for perpetual contract transactions.

The dominance of Hyperliquid has also led to a decline in the market share of other protocols. For example, dYdX, which was once a leader in perpetual contract trading, has seen its market share drop from 13.2% at the beginning of 2024 to just 2.7% in March 2025. This decline indicates a clear shift in trader preferences towards platforms that offer better performance and user experience.

The rise of Hyperliquid underscores a broader trend in the DeFi landscape. The future of DeFi does not lie in multi-chain expansion but in protocols that can transform industry narratives into user habits. Hyperliquid's success is a testament to this trend, as it has managed to capture a significant market share by offering a superior trading experience and reliable infrastructure. This trend is likely to continue, with more protocols focusing on performance and user experience to capture market share.