State of Crypto Perpetuals Report 2026

The landscape of perpetual exchanges is undergoing a structural shift. Since BitMEX pioneered the format in 2016, centralized perpetual exchanges (Perp CEXes) have acted as the primary liquidity gateways for the crypto market, processing a staggering $85.3 trillion in volume in 2025 alone. 

However, driven by rapid product innovation and a surge in on-chain activity, decentralized exchanges (Perp DEXes) have evolved from niche protocols into sophisticated competitors.

We’ve summarized the key highlights, but be sure to dig into the full 17 slides in the full report below.

Top 5 Highlights of CoinGecko’s State of Crypto Perpetuals Report 2026

1. MEXC and BingX Have Listed The Most Perp Contracts Between January 2025 - April 2026, Totalling 879 and 565, Respectively

2. The Top 11 Perp CEXes Saw Monthly Average Trading Volume Fall to $4.7T in 2026, Compared to $7.1T in 2025; BingX Has Had The Strongest Start in 2026

3. The Top 12 Perp DEXes Saw Monthly Average Trading Volume Increase to $611.57B in 2026, Compared to $531.65B in 2025

4. Perp DEXes Surged in 2025, Following the Rise of Hyperliquid, With the Perp DEX:CEX Ratio Hitting a Peak of 13% in November 2025, But Has Dipped in 2026

5. Perp DEXes Have Rapidly Grown Open Interest (OI) Share Throughout 2025, Now at 13.5%, Led By Hyperliquid

1. MEXC and BingX Have Listed The Most Perp Contracts Between January 2025 - April 2026, Totalling 879 and 565, Respectively

Since January 2025, MEXC and BingX are the top 2 exchanges that have listed the most perp contracts, totaling 879 and 565 new listings, respectively, an average of 55 and 35 new contracts monthly.  Both exchanges implement a more aggressive strategy of listing perp contracts on longer-tail crypto assets.

6 out of the top 11 exchanges listed an average of <20 perpetual contracts a month, reflecting a more conservative approach. Crypto.com had the fewest new perpetuals, ranging from 2 monthly listings in December 2025 to a peak of 13 in April 2026.

Notably, most of the larger exchanges tend to list more perpetuals than spot, as Binance added 305 new perpetual markets against 125 new spot listings in the past 16 months, mostly memecoins and AI-related token contracts.

Conversely, exchanges such as MEXC, BingX, and Gate, which list the most perpetual contracts, are even more aggressive on spot listings. Demand for leverage on smaller assets is much lower and tailored towards highly niche risk appetites.

Unlike spot listings, perpetual contracts generally take longer to be added due to compliance and receive less demand for specific listings. Compared to the 7,803 new tokens listed on CoinGecko since January 2025, the top 11 CEXes recorded new perpetual listings for only 1,030 tokens.

2. The Top 11 Perp CEXes Saw Monthly Average Trading Volume Fall to $4.7T in 2026, Compared to $7.1T in 2025; BingX Has Had The Strongest Start in 2026

Average monthly trading volume amongst the Top 11 Perp CEXes has fallen from $7.11 trillion in 2025 to $4.69 trillion in the first four months of 2026, a drop of -34.0%.

BingX has had the strongest start to 2026 thus far, with its market share rising from 3% in 2025 to 5% in 2026. It is now the seventh largest perp CEX in the first four months of the year.

Meanwhile, Bitget has seen its volume tumble in 2026, with average monthly trading volume dropping from $740.62 billion in 2025 to $287.08 billion, a decline of -61.2%. However, it still held a 6% market share, placing it #6.

At the top, Binance and OKX have continued to consolidate their position, with minor gains in volume share. In the first four months of 2026, Binance and OKX hold 33% and 15% market share respectively.

 

3. The Top 12 Perp DEXes Saw Monthly Average Trading Volume Increase to $611.57B in 2026, Compared to $531.65B in 2025

While volume started off strong in 2026, at $751.59 billion in January, it has gradually fallen, with volume in April coming in at $481.84 billion. However, these figures are still significantly higher than the same period in 2025, where volume was <$300 billion.

2025 was a defining year for perp DEXes, with $6.38 trillion in trading volume, up from $1.50 trillion in 2024. Despite the market downturn, 2026 is still on track to match or surpass 2025’s volumes. 

As 2026 progresses, newer Perp DEXes such as Pacifica, Extended, and Variational have continued to gain market share. Notably, all three have ‘points programs’, and could be a sign that airdrops are in the pipeline. In April, their market shares stood at 4%, 4%, and 3% respectively. All three have overtaken the likes of Jupiter and dYdX.

 

4. Perp DEXes Surged in 2025, Following The Rise of Hyperliquid, With The Perp DEX:CEX Ratio Hitting a Peak of 13% in November 2025, But Has Dipped in 2026

The perp DEX:CEX trading volume ratio climbed throughout 2025, from just 3% in January to 13% in December. However, it has since begun to dip from its high, currently sitting at 10% in April 2026. This marks the first time since October 2025 that perp CEXes have regained their 90% super majority.

The majority of perp DEX volume is routed through Hyperliquid. For context, Hyperliquid’s volume in April totaled $190.28 billion, accounting for ~3.9% of the total volume among perp exchanges. This ranks it #9, just behind BingX ($196.81 billion), and significantly ahead of KuCoin ($83.71 billion.)

While it seems like the growth of Perp DEXes may have temporarily slowed, newer Perp DEXes such as Pacifica, Extended, and Variational may yet reverse this over the coming months, as their point programs ramp up with expectations of airdrops.

5. Perp DEXes Have Rapidly Grown Open Interest (OI) Share Throughout 2025, Now at 13.5%, Led By Hyperliquid 

Overall, total crypto OI has fallen from $120.35B at the start of 2025 to $99.09B at the end of April 2026. This puts it more than 50% off its peak of $210.02B on October 7, just before the 10.10 liquidation event.

Predictably, CEXes continue to account for the overwhelming majority of OI. However, this has fallen from 96.4% at the start of 2025, to 86.5% as of April 30, 2026. The Perp DEX share of OI has been >10% since the start of October.

The expansion of Real World Assets (RWA) on-chain has contributed to the rise of perp DEXes, with crypto-native users looking to these platforms to pursue TradFi opportunities amid the stock market boom, without having to cash out of crypto to fund traditional brokerage accounts.

Nonetheless, perp CEXes have also caught on to this trend, and are also beginning to list new RWA perp contracts.
 

Read the Report: CoinGecko’s State of Crypto Perpetuals Report 2026