Analysis: Iran Conflict Drives Market Shift Toward 24/7 Trading, On-Chain Platforms Emerge as New Scenarios for Round-the-Clock Price Discovery

Odaily reported that the escalating situation in Iran is becoming a real-world stress test for the financial market's ability to trade around the clock. Market analyst Huang pointed out that amid the latest geopolitical conflict, traders did not wait for traditional financial markets to open. Instead, they conducted transactions directly through blockchain infrastructure, engaging in round-the-clock price discovery and risk hedging for assets like crude oil and gold on on-chain platforms such as Hyperliquid.

The analysis suggests that the current speed of information dissemination has far exceeded the response mechanisms of traditional markets. News spreads instantly across time zones, yet traditional trading systems remain constrained by market opening hours and weekend closures. This prevents prices from reflecting the latest information in real-time, often leading to concentrated volatility and liquidity shocks when markets reopen.

In contrast, blockchain networks offer 24/7 operation and real-time settlement capabilities, allowing traders to continuously adjust their positions during non-trading hours. This is viewed as a complement, or even an alternative, to traditional market structures. During this Iran conflict, the value of this "never-closed market" model has been further highlighted.

Analysts point out that the core contradiction lies in the structural mismatch between market infrastructure and the information environment. Although the traditional financial system still holds advantages in liquidity and scale, time boundaries are increasingly becoming a source of inefficiency, especially in a macro environment characterized by high volatility and frequent unexpected events.

Meanwhile, on-chain derivatives platforms represented by Hyperliquid are validating the feasibility of 24/7 markets, gradually taking on part of the risk pricing function during weekends and non-trading hours. However, the industry generally acknowledges that current on-chain systems still face constraints in terms of liquidity depth, performance, and institutional-grade risk control, making it difficult to fully replace traditional exchanges in the short term.

Overall, the market is shifting from being "trading session-driven" to "information-driven perpetual trading," and competition at the infrastructure level is accelerating. (CoinDesk)