Perpetual DEX (perp DEX)

Perpetual futures are the most traded product in crypto, and perp DEXs offer them without a centralised exchange account. Users deposit collateral, usually USDC, into a smart contract and open leveraged long or short positions. Designs vary: some run a central limit order book on their own chain, such as Hyperliquid or dYdX; others, such as GMX, let traders take prices from an oracle against a shared liquidity pool; earlier models used virtual AMMs.

Perp DEXs have grown into one of the largest sectors of DeFi by volume and fee revenue. They appeal to traders who want self-custody and transparent liquidations, and to liquidity providers who earn fees and trader losses by acting as the counterparty in pool-based designs.

Risks include oracle manipulation, thin liquidity on smaller markets, losses for pool liquidity providers when traders win, and auto-deleveraging when an insurance fund runs out. Many perp DEXs restrict users in certain jurisdictions, and some rely on a centralised sequencer or small validator set that can halt trading.