The Battle of Perp DEX in 2025: Hyperliquid, Aster, Lighter, and EdgeX divide the market; who is your best choice?

Author: Stacy Muur

Compiled by: Deep Tide TechFlow

In 2025, the decentralized trading market for perpetual contracts (Perp DEX) experienced explosive growth. In October, the market's monthly trading volume surpassed $1.2 trillion for the first time, attracting widespread attention from retail traders, institutional investors, and venture capital firms.

Over the past year, Hyperliquid has been dominant, reaching a peak market share of 71% of on-chain perpetual contract trading volume in May. However, as we moved into November, Hyperliquid's market share has plummeted to 20%, with new competitors rapidly emerging and carving up the market:

Lighter: 27.7%

Aster: 19.3%

EdgeX: 14.6%

With the rapid development of this changing ecosystem, four major players have emerged and are fiercely competing for industry dominance:

@HyperliquidX – A seasoned leader in on-chain perpetual contracts

@Aster_DEX - A rocket with huge trading volume but constant controversy

@Lighter_xyz – The disruptor of zero fees and native zk (zero-knowledge proof) technology.

@edgeX_exchange – A low-profile institutional-friendly dark horse

This in-depth investigation will analyze these platforms from multiple dimensions including technology, data, controversy, and long-term feasibility, helping readers distinguish between hype and reality.

Part One: Hyperliquid - The Unquestionable King

Why can Hyperliquid dominate?

Hyperliquid has established its position as an industry-leading decentralized perpetual contract exchange, with a peak market share of 71%. Although competitors have temporarily dominated media headlines with explosive trading volume growth, Hyperliquid remains a core pillar of the perpetual contract decentralized exchange (Perp DEX) ecosystem.

Technical Foundation

Hyperliquid's dominance stems from its revolutionary architectural decision — building a custom Layer 1 blockchain specifically designed for derivatives trading. The platform employs the HyperBFT consensus mechanism, supporting sub-second order confirmations and a performance of 200,000 transactions per second, even surpassing many centralized exchanges.

The true nature of Open Interest

Although competitors often seize the spotlight with eye-catching 24-hour trading volume data, the indicator that truly reveals the state of capital deployment is Open Interest (OI), which refers to the total value of outstanding perpetual contracts.

Trading volume represents activity.

Open interest reflects the long-term investment and commitment of funds.

According to data from 21Shares, September 2025:

Aster's trading volume accounts for about 70%.

The trading volume of Hyperliquid has temporarily decreased to about 10%.

However, this advantage is limited to trading volume, and trading volume is the most easily distorted metric through incentives, rebates, frequent trading by market makers, or wash trading activities.

The latest 24-hour position volume data shows:

Hyperliquid: $8.014 billion

Aster: $2.329 billion

Lighter: $1.591 billion

EdgeX: $780.41 million

Total Open Interest (Top Four): $12.714 billion

Hyperliquid market share: about 63%

This means that Hyperliquid holds nearly two-thirds of the open positions among the major perpetual contract platforms, surpassing the total of Aster, Lighter, and EdgeX.

Open Interest Market Share (24-hour Data)

Hyperliquid: 63.0%

Aster: 18.3%

Lighter: 12.5%

EdgeX: 6.1%

This indicator reflects the capital that traders are willing to hold overnight, rather than trading frequently or inflating volume merely for incentives.

Hyperliquid: A high position/volume ratio (approximately 0.64) indicates that a large trading volume is being converted into active and sustained positions.

Aster & Lighter: The low open interest/trading volume ratio (approximately 0.18 and 0.12) indicates a high turnover rate but less capital in positions, which is typically a sign of incentive-driven activity rather than stable liquidity.

Comprehensive analysis:

Trading Volume (24h): Reflects short-term activity

Open Interest (24 hours): Reflects the capital of risk exposure

Open Interest/Trading Volume Ratio (24 hours): Reflects the authenticity of activity and whether it is driven by incentives.

According to all indicators based on open interest, Hyperliquid is a structural leader:

Highest open interest

The largest proportion of committed capital

The strongest position/volume ratio

The open interest exceeds the total of the other three major platforms.

Trading volume rankings may fluctuate, but open interest reveals the true market leader, which is Hyperliquid.

Tested in real combat

October 2025 liquidation event

In the clearing event of October 2025, the market clearing scale reached 19 billion USD, while Hyperliquid maintained perfect operational stability in response to the surge in trading volume.

Institutional Recognition

21 Shares has submitted a relevant product application for Hyperliquid (token code: HYPE) to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and has listed a regulated HYPE ETP (Exchange-Traded Product) on the SIX Swiss Exchange. These developments have been reported by CoinMarketCap and other market data tracking platforms, indicating that institutional access to HYPE is increasing. At the same time, the HyperEVM ecosystem is also expanding, but public data has not yet confirmed the specific veracity of its so-called '180+ projects' or '$4.1 billion total value locked (TVL).'

Conclusion: Based on the current application records, exchange listing status, and ecosystem growth reported by platforms such as CoinMarketCap, Hyperliquid demonstrates strong momentum and increasing institutional recognition, further solidifying its position as a leading decentralized derivatives platform.

Part Two: Aster - Explosive Growth Amid Scandals

Aster is a multi-chain perpetual futures exchange set to launch in early 2025, with a clear goal: to provide users with high-speed, high-leverage derivatives trading across BNB Chain, Arbitrum, Ethereum, and Solana, without the need for asset cross-chain bridging.

The project does not start from scratch but originates from the merger of Asterus and APX Finance at the end of 2024, combining APX's perpetual contract engine with Asterus's liquidity technology.

explosive growth

Aster was launched on September 17, 2025, at a price of $0.08 and soared to $2.42 within a week, an increase of 2800%. The daily trading volume peaked at over $70 billion, temporarily dominating the entire decentralized perpetual contract market.

The “rocket fuel” driving this growth comes from Binance founder Zhao Changpeng (CZ). CZ supports Aster through YZi Labs and endorses it on social media, causing the token price to skyrocket. In the first 30 days after its launch, Aster's trading volume exceeded $320 billion, briefly capturing more than 50% of the perpetual contract market.

DefiLlama Delisting Incident

On October 5, 2025, DefiLlama (the most trusted data source in the crypto industry) removed Aster's data due to its trading volume being almost identical to Binance's trading volume — a perfect 1:1 match.

Real exchange data usually shows natural fluctuations, while perfect correlation indicates one problem: artificially created trading data.

Evidence:

The trading volume pattern completely replicates Binance (including all trading pairs like XRP, ETH, etc.)

Aster refuses to provide transaction data to verify the authenticity of the transaction.

96% of ASTER tokens are controlled by only 6 wallets

The trading volume/position ratio reaches 58+ (the healthy value should be below 3)

Since then, the price of the ASTER token has immediately plummeted by 10%, from $2.42 to the current approximately $1.05.

Aster's Defense

CEO Leonard claimed that the correlation of trading volume is merely the result of “airdrop farmers” hedging on Binance. But if this is true, why refuse to provide data to prove it?

Although Aster was relisted on DefiLlama data weeks later, DefiLlama warned: “It is still a black box, and we cannot verify the authenticity of the data.”

The actual highlights of Aster

To be fair, Aster does provide some practical features, including:

1001x leverage: Extremely high leverage ratio, attracting high-risk preference traders.

Hidden Orders: Support discreet transactions to enhance trading privacy.

Multi-chain support: covering BNB Chain, Ethereum, and Solana, facilitating cross-chain operations for users.

Yield-bearing collateral: Allows users to earn returns by staking assets. In addition, Aster is building a privacy-preserving chain based on Zero-Knowledge Proofs - Aster Chain. However, no technology can cover up the issue of false data.

Conclusion: The evidence is conclusive.

The following facts cannot be ignored:

✅ Perfect correlation with Binance = Wash Trading

✅ Refusing transparency = Concealing problems

✅ 96% of the tokens are controlled by 6 wallets = Highly centralized

✅ DefiLlama delisted = Trust completely collapsed

Aster has absorbed a large amount of value through CZ's promotion and artificially created trading volume, but has failed to establish a real infrastructure. It may survive due to Binance's support, but its reputation has been permanently damaged.

For traders: high risk. You are betting on the story of CZ, not real growth. It is advisable to set strict stop-loss points.

For investors: Avoid. There are too many risk signals, and there are better options in the market (like Hyperliquid).

Part Three: Lighter - Technology has potential, data is questionable.

Technical Advantages

The technical background of Lighter is impressive: founded by former Citadel engineers, it has received support from Peter Thiel, a16z, and Lightspeed, raising a total of $68 million with a valuation of $1.5 billion. It uses Zero-Knowledge Proofs to encrypt and verify each transaction, ensuring transparency and security.

As a Layer 2 (L2) of Ethereum, Lighter inherits the security of Ethereum and provides users with fund protection through the “Escape Hatch” mechanism—users can still retrieve their funds through smart contracts even if the platform fails. In contrast, Layer 1 (L1) on App chains typically lacks this security guarantee.

Lighter will be launched on October 2, 2025, with a total locked value (TVL) reaching 1.1 billion USD within just a few weeks, a daily trading volume stabilizing at 700-800 million USD, and over 56,000 users.

Zero Fees = Aggressive Strategy

Lighter charges 0% fees for traders (Maker and Taker), completely free. This strategy makes it irresistible for all fee-sensitive traders, while instantly making competing platforms lose their appeal.

The strategy is very simple: seize market share through unsustainable economic models, cultivate user loyalty, and then turn a profit.

Test on October 11

Just ten days after the mainnet launch, the largest liquidation event in cryptocurrency history occurred, resulting in $19 billion in funds being liquidated.

Positive aspects:

The system operated normally during the 5 hours of market turmoil.

LLP (Liquidity Pool) provides liquidity support when competitors exit.

Negative aspects:

The database crashed after 5 hours, and the platform was down for 4 hours.

Worrying:

LLP incurred losses, while Hyperliquid's HLP and EdgeX's eLP achieved profits.

Founder Vlad Novakovski's explanation: The database upgrade was originally planned for Sunday, but market fluctuations on Friday caused the old system to crash earlier.

Trading volume issues:

Data shows that there is a significant behavior of exploiting points.

24-hour trading volume: $12.78 billion

Open Interest: $1.591 billion

Trading Volume/OI Ratio: 8.03

Health ratio: Usually below 3; above 5 is concerning; 8.03 is at an extreme level.

Comparison data:

Hyperliquid: 1.57 (Organic Trading)

EdgeX: 2.7 (Moderate Level)

Aster: 5.4 (Concerning)

Lighter: 8.03 (the behavior of earning points through exploitation is obvious)

Traders can generate $8 in trading volume for every $1 deployed—frequently and quickly flipping positions to earn points, rather than holding real positions.

30-day data confirmation: Total trading volume $294 billion vs Total open contracts $47 billion = 6.25 ratio, still far above a reasonable level.

Airdrop questions

The Lighter points program is highly aggressive. User points will be converted into LITER tokens at the Token Generation Event (TGE, expected in Q4 2025 or Q1 2026). Currently, the pricing of points in the over-the-counter market ranges from $5 to over $100. Considering that the potential airdrop value could reach tens of thousands of dollars, explosive trading volume seems reasonable.

Key question: What will happen after the TGE? Will users continue to stay, or will the trading volume collapse rapidly?

Conclusion

Advantages:

✅ Cutting-edge technology (zero-knowledge verification effective)

✅ Zero fees = true competitive advantage

✅ Inherit the security of Ethereum

✅ Top team and supporters

Concern:

⚠️ The trading volume/open interest ratio (Volume/OI) of 8.03 = Highly agricultural behavior

⚠️ LLP incurred losses during the stress test

⚠️ 4-hour downtime incident raises questions

⚠️ The user retention rate after the airdrop has not yet been verified.

Key differences with Aster: No wash trading allegations, not delisted by DefiLlama. The high trading volume reflects aggressive but temporary incentives, rather than systematic fraud.

Bottom line: Lighter has world-class technology, but its data metrics are concerning. Can it convert “farmers” into real users? Technically, the answer is yes, but historical experience shows a lower likelihood.

For farmers: TGE is a good opportunity.

For investors: It is recommended to wait 2-3 months after the TGE to observe whether the trading volume can be maintained.

Probability Prediction:

40% may become one of the top three platforms

60% may just be a points farm with excellent technology

Part Four: EdgeX - An Institutional-Level Professional Platform

Advantages of Amber Group

EdgeX operates in a unique model. As a project incubated by Amber Group (managing assets totaling $5 billion), it brings together professionals from Morgan Stanley, Barclays, Goldman Sachs, and Bybit. This is not about native users in the crypto space learning about finance, but rather traditional finance (TradFi) experts bringing institutional-level experience into decentralized finance (DeFi).

The market-making gene of Amber Group is directly transformed into the core advantages of EdgeX: deep liquidity, tight spreads, and execution quality comparable to centralized exchanges (CEX). The platform is set to launch in September 2024, with a clear goal: to provide CEX-level performance while retaining users' self-custody rights.

EdgeX is built on StarkEx (StarkWare's mature zero-knowledge engine), processing 200,000 orders per second with a latency of less than 10 milliseconds, comparable to Binance's speed.

The fees are lower than Hyperliquid.

EdgeX completely outperforms Hyperliquid in terms of fees:

Cost Comparison:

EdgeX Maker: 0.012% vs Hyperliquid: 0.015%

EdgeX Taker: 0.038% vs Hyperliquid: 0.045%

For traders with a monthly trading volume of 10 million USD, this means a savings of 7,000 to 10,000 USD per year compared to Hyperliquid.

In addition, EdgeX performs better in liquidity for retail orders (under $6 million) - with tighter spreads and less slippage, outperforming competitors.

Sustainable income and healthy metrics

Unlike Lighter's zero-fee model or Aster's questionable data, EdgeX achieves real and sustainable revenue:

Current data:

Total Value Locked (TVL): $489.7 million

24-hour trading volume: 8.2 billion USD

Open Interest (OI): $780 million

30-day income: $41.72 million (up 147% compared to the second quarter)

Annual income: $509 million (second only to Hyperliquid)

Volume/Open Interest Ratio (Volume/OI): 10.51 (Although there are concerns, a deeper analysis is needed)

At first glance, the trading volume/OI ratio of 10.51 appears unsatisfactory. However, considering that EdgeX is initiating liquidity through an aggressive points program, this ratio is steadily improving as the platform matures. More importantly, EdgeX has consistently maintained healthy revenue throughout this process—demonstrating that it attracts real traders rather than mere speculators.

October Stress Test

During the market crash on October 11 (with $19 billion liquidated), EdgeX performed outstandingly:

✅ Zero downtime (in contrast, Lighter had 4 hours of downtime)

✅ eLP (EdgeX Liquidity Pool) remains profitable (Lighter's LLP incurred losses during stress testing)

✅ Provides liquidity providers with an annualized yield of 57% (the highest in the industry)

eLP has demonstrated exceptional risk management capabilities during extreme market fluctuations, achieving profitability even while competitors struggle.

The unique advantages of EdgeX

Multi-chain flexibility:

Support Ethereum main chain (Ethereum L1), Arbitrum, and BNB chain;

USDT and USDC can be used as collateral;

Supports cross-chain deposits and withdrawals (in contrast, Hyperliquid only supports Arbitrum).

Best Mobile Experience:

Provides official iOS and Android applications (Hyperliquid does not);

A clean user interface that allows users to manage their positions anytime and anywhere.

Key layout in the Asian market:

Strategically enter the Korean and Asian markets through localized support and the Korea Blockchain Week event.

Capture regional users that Western competitors overlook to avoid excessive competition.

Transparent Points Program:

60% comes from trading volume

20% comes from referrals

10% comes from TVL/liquidity pool

10% comes from clearing/open interest (OI) Clearly stated: “We do not reward wash trading.” Data also verifies this - the trading volume/OI ratio is improving, rather than deteriorating like a pure farming model.

Challenges faced

Market share: EdgeX currently only accounts for 5.5% of the open interest market of perpetual contract decentralized exchanges. To further grow, aggressive incentive measures (which may lead to farming behaviors) need to be taken or significant partnerships need to be established.

Lack of killer features: EdgeX performs well in various aspects, but it does not have particularly outstanding features. It is more like a “business class” option, performing steadily but not disruptively.

Insufficient cost competitiveness: Lighter's zero fees make EdgeX's “lower than Hyperliquid” fee advantage seem less appealing.

TGE time is relatively late: EdgeX is expected to conduct TGE in the fourth quarter of 2025, missing the early airdrop frenzy of competitors.

Final judgment

Advantages:

✅ Institutional Support: Amber Group provides liquidity assurance.

✅ Real Income: Annual income reaches 509 million USD

✅ Best liquidity pool return: 57% annual yield, still profitable during market crashes.

✅ Cost Advantage: Lower than Hyperliquid

✅ Clear data: No wash trading scandals

✅ Multi-chain flexibility + excellent mobile application: provides the best user experience

Hidden danger:

⚠️ Small market share: only accounts for 5.5% of the open interest (OI) market.

⚠️ Trading Volume/OI Ratio: 10.51 (Though improving, it is still relatively high)

⚠️ Lack of unique differentiating features: No killer highlights

⚠️ Inadequate cost competitiveness: Unable to compete with zero-fee platforms

Target Audience:

Asian traders: Users seeking localized support

Institutional users: Professionals relying on Amber's liquidity.

Conservative traders: Users who focus on risk management.

Mobile-first users: traders who need to manage their positions anytime, anywhere.

Liquidity Provider (LP) investors: Investors seeking stable returns

Summary:

EdgeX's goal is not to challenge Hyperliquid's market dominance, but rather to focus on serving the Asian market, institutional users, and conservative traders, expecting to capture 10-15% of the market share. It is building a sustainable and profitable niche.

EdgeX can be seen as the “Kraken” of decentralized exchanges for perpetual contracts - not the largest, nor the flashiest, but robust, professional, and trusted by mature users who value execution quality.

For farmers: EdgeX provides moderate opportunities with less competitive pressure compared to other platforms.

For investors: Suitable for small-scale allocation to achieve diversified investment, with lower risk and relatively stable returns.

Market Comparison Analysis of Decentralized Exchanges for Perpetual Contracts

Figure: Prediction based on existing public data

Trading Volume/OI Ratio Analysis

Industry Standard: Health Ratio ≤ 3

Hyperliquid: 1.57 ✅ indicates a strong organic trading model

Aster: 4.74 ⚠️ The ratio is high, reflecting a large number of incentive activities.

Lighter: 8.19 ⚠️ High ratio indicates trading behavior driven by points

EdgeX: 10.51 ⚠️ The impact of the points program is significant, but improvements are underway.

Market Share: Open Contract Distribution

Total market size: ~13 billion USD in open contracts

Hyperliquid: 62% - Market Leader

Aster: 18% - Strong second position

Lighter: 12% - Sustained Growth Presence

EdgeX: 6% - Focused on niche markets

Platform Overview

Hyperliquid - Leader

Market Share: 62%, Indicators Stable

Annual income: 2.9 billion USD, active repurchase plan

All community models: have a reliable history record

Advantages: Market dominance, sustainable economic model

Rating: A+

Aster - High Growth, High Risk

Ecological Support: Deep integration with the BNB ecosystem, supported by CZ.

Data Dispute: Encountered transparency issues with DefiLlama data in October 2025.

Multi-chain strategy: Encourage user adoption

Advantages: ecological support, retail market coverage

Focus: Continuous monitoring of data transparency issues is required.

Rating: C+

Lighter - Technology Pioneer

Zero fee model: Attract high-frequency traders

Technological Innovation: Advanced ZK Verification Technology

Top supporters: investors like Thiel, a16z, and Lightspeed

Listing time: TGE is expected in the first quarter of 2026, currently performance data is limited.

Advantages: Technological innovation, Ethereum L2 security

Focus: Sustainability of the business model, user retention rate after airdrop

Rating: Pending (Awaiting TGE performance)

EdgeX - Institutional Focused

Institutional Support: Amber Group provides liquidity

Annual income: $509 million, liquidity pool performance stable

Market Strategy: Focus on the Asian market, mobile-first.

Advantages: Institutional credibility, steady growth

Focus: Small market share, competitive positioning

Rating: B

Investment advice

Exchange platform selection:

Hyperliquid: Deepest liquidity, reliable performance

Lighter: Zero-fee model benefits high-frequency traders

EdgeX: Lower fees than Hyperliquid, excellent mobile experience

Aster: Multi-chain flexibility, BNB ecosystem support

Token Investment Timeline:

HYPE: Listed, current price $37.19

ASTER: Current trading price $1.05, need to pay attention to future developments.

LITER: TGE expects to evaluate post-listing performance in the first quarter of 2026.

EGX: TGE is expected in the fourth quarter of 2025, initial performance needs to be observed.

Key conclusion

Market Maturity: The decentralized exchange field for perpetual contracts has shown clear differentiation, with Hyperliquid establishing a leadership position through sustainable metrics and community collaboration.

Growth strategy: Each platform targets different user groups - Hyperliquid is aimed at professionals, Aster targets retail and the Asian market, Lighter focuses on technology, and EdgeX concentrates on institutional users.

Key Indicators: The trading volume/OI ratio and revenue generation ratio reflect platform performance more clearly than pure trading volume.

Future Outlook: The post-TGE performance of Lighter and EdgeX will determine their long-term competitive positioning; Aster's future depends on addressing transparency issues and maintaining ecosystem support.