On-Chain Perpetual Contract Trading Cools Down: DEX Trading Volume Declines for Five Consecutive Months, Nearly 50% Below Peak

According to data from DefiLlama, on-chain perpetual contract (Perp) trading has declined for five consecutive months since peaking in October 2025. In March 2026, Perp DEX trading volume dropped to $699 billion, a significant decrease from the peak of $1.36 trillion in October last year. Furthermore, daily data also indicates weakening activity. On April 4th, the single-day trading volume fell to $8.4 billion, marking the first time it dropped below $10 billion since September 2025 and hitting a new low since July 2025. This reflects a continued cooling in leveraged trading and speculative demand. Additionally, the current Perp DEX trading volume remains highly concentrated among leading platforms. Over the past 30 days, Hyperliquid recorded approximately $185.5 billion in trading volume, accounting for about 34% of the total volume of the top ten platforms. (Cointelegraph)