Perpetual futures trading is losing momentum across both centralized and decentralized exchanges, according to recent analytics snapshots. In July, activity in CEX perps dropped to a $4 trillion monthly total—an all-time low for this cycle not seen since December 2023—while DEX perpetual volume nearly reached a one-year low.
The downturn is occurring alongside a clear softening in spot trading. Coinglass data shows daily spot volume fell 23.6% over July 1–31, dropping from $17.8 billion to $13.6 billion, reinforcing the idea that broader market participation weakened rather than the perps market alone.
Key takeaways
- Monthly perpetual futures volume on CEXs fell to $4 trillion in July, the lowest level in 31 months (since December 2023), according to CryptoRank.
- Binance remained the largest perps venue at $1.4 trillion monthly volume, followed by OKX ($607 billion) and Bybit ($300 billion).
- DEX perpetual trading volume fell to $531 billion in July, the lowest since June 2025, and down 21% from June 2026 ($676 billion), per DefiLlama.
- DEX open interest slid to $17.9 billion in July from a September 2025 peak of $19.4 billion, suggesting reduced capital commitment.
CEX perpetual futures hit a 31-month low
CryptoRank reported that perpetual futures trading volume on centralized exchanges totaled $4 trillion in July, marking a 31-month low last observed in December 2023. The result follows a brief rebound earlier in the second quarter, when perps volumes strengthened between April and June before tapering off again across major venues in July.
Venue concentration remained pronounced. Binance led CEXs with $1.4 trillion in monthly perpetual futures volume, with OKX at $607 billion and Bybit at $300 billion, as noted in a CryptoRank post shared on X: https://x.com/CryptoRank_io/status/2085658806382719037.
For traders, the headline is less about where perps trade and more about how much leverage-driven activity the market is absorbing. When monthly perpetual volume contracts across multiple top venues simultaneously, it often signals that fewer traders are actively rotating risk—even if underlying spot prices are moving.
Spot volume weakness aligns with lower perps participation
Coinglass’ global trading volume data points to why the perps market may be cooling: it shows spot crypto daily trading volume declined 23.6% from July 1 to July 31. Spot volume went from $17.8 billion to $13.6 billion over the month, according to Coinglass’ “global trading volume total” view: https://www.coinglass.com/pro/i/global-trading-volume-total.
This matters because spot market participation and derivatives activity frequently move together. When market participants dial back risk—whether due to macro pressure, reduced volatility, or tighter sentiment—spot volumes often soften first, followed by lower turnover in leveraged products like perps.
While the data cited does not identify a single driver, the timing is notable: CEX perps hit a long-cycle low in the same period that spot trading volume shrank materially. Investors watching derivatives markets typically treat such alignment as a sign the slowdown is structural rather than isolated to one platform.
DEX perps near a one-year low, open interest also slips
Perpetual trading volume on decentralized exchanges fell to $531 billion in July, per DefiLlama. The figure is described as the lowest level since June 2025 and represents a 21% decline from the $676 billion recorded in June 2026. DefiLlama’s monthly perps data is available here: https://defillama.com/perps?groupBy=monthly.
DefiLlama data also suggests the DEX perps slowdown is not brand new. The article notes perps volume has been on a downward trend since the $1.36 trillion level seen in October 2025.
Open interest on DEXs showed a parallel shift. It fell to $17.9 billion in July from a peak of $19.4 billion in September 2025. Because open interest reflects the total value of active, unsettled perpetual contracts, a decline typically implies fewer positions are being carried—or that existing positions are being closed more quickly than new ones are opened.
In practical terms, lower open interest can reduce the “fuel” available for liquidations and high-frequency trading, which may contribute to weaker overall perpetual turnover. For users, it can also translate into less depth across price bands and potentially different execution dynamics during volatile periods.
Hyperliquid leads DEX volume, with RWA share rising
Despite the broader contraction in DEX perps, one venue stands out for both scale and shifting composition. Hyperliquid was the leading DEX in reported perpetual trading volume over the prior 30 days, with $199 billion.
The composition of Hyperliquid’s trading activity has been changing in a way that may matter for how traders interpret the broader volume decline. The article states that a growing portion of Hyperliquid’s volume is tied to tokenized real-world assets (RWAs). It cites that RWAs accounted for 32% of Hyperliquid’s second-quarter trading activity, generating 6.6% of the protocol’s $169 million quarterly revenue, with coverage referenced here: https://cointelegraph.com/news/hyperliquid-rwa-contracts-rise-32-trading-q2.
It also notes that RWAs became Hyperliquid’s largest trading category for the first time last month, when RWAs were responsible for 52% of total weekly trading volume between July 13 and July 19, as referenced in earlier reporting: https://cointelegraph.com/news/hyperliquid-rwa-volume-crypto-trading-first-time.
That split between overall market softness and venue-specific product momentum is important. If RWAs are attracting incremental flows within a shrinking perps market, Hyperliquid may be benefiting from a reallocation of speculative interest toward tokenized instruments—rather than seeing the same broad withdrawal seen across the rest of the DEX perps ecosystem.
Going forward, traders and investors should watch whether the July contraction proves to be a continuation trend or simply a mid-year dip. The key signals to monitor are whether spot volume stabilizes after the monthly decline and whether DEX open interest begins to recover—alongside whether product mix shifts like Hyperliquid’s rising RWA share continue to offset weaker aggregate perps demand.
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