dYdX
dYdX is a decentralized exchange protocol offering perpetual futures, spot trading, and margin across 386 markets, serving professional crypto traders, algorithmic traders, and trading teams. Operating on its own Cosmos-based Layer 1 chain with gasless trading and self-custody, it has processed over $1.55 trillion in lifetime volume.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingSoftware
What dYdX does
dYdX is a decentralized exchange protocol offering perpetual futures, margin, spot trading, and borrow/lend pools, serving professional and active crypto traders, algorithmic/quantitative traders, trading teams, and social/community traders. Founded in 2017 and headquartered in Zug, Switzerland (with corporate operations via dYdX International Ltd. and dYdX Trading Inc. dba dYdX Labs), the platform operates as a community-governed protocol rather than a custodial intermediary. As of 2025, dYdX supports 386 markets and has processed over $1.55 trillion in cumulative trading volume, with 98,200+ DYDX token holders governing the ecosystem.
The core technology is dYdX Chain, a standalone Layer 1 blockchain built on Cosmos SDK using Tendermint Proof-of-Stake consensus, featuring a fully decentralized off-chain orderbook and matching engine. This architecture eliminates gas fees for trading while maintaining institutional-grade execution speed, supported by specialized infrastructure including the Order Entry Gateway Service (OEGS) for one-hop order delivery and Designated Proposers for predictable network topology. MEV mitigation is provided via encrypted order execution and Skip Protocol's validator monitoring dashboard. Cross-chain deposits are accepted from Ethereum, Base, Arbitrum, Polygon, Avalanche, and Optimism; USDC bridging uses Circle's CCTP on Noble and Axelar/Squid for one-click onboarding.
The business model is fee-based, generating transaction fees of 10-20 bps for takers and 5-10 bps for makers on perpetual trades. Protocol revenue is distributed 100% to ecosystem participants: 75% to DYDX token buybacks, 5% to the Treasury SubDAO, 5% to MegaVault, and the balance to staking rewards (as of November 2025). Additional revenue mechanics include partner revenue share for routed order flow, builder codes for order builders, and a 30-50% affiliate revenue share program. dYdX Labs does not directly capture protocol revenue per its legal disclaimers; economic value flows to the Foundation, token holders, and ecosystem participants. The company has raised approximately $87M across multiple funding rounds since 2017, including a $65M Series C led by Paradigm in June 2021, and acquired Pocket Protector in July 2025 to expand social trading capabilities.
dYdX firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- dYdX
- Legal name
- dYdX International Ltd.
- Website
- https://dydx.xyz
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- dYdX is a decentralized exchange protocol offering perpetual futures, spot trading, and margin across 386 markets, serving professional crypto traders, algorithmic traders, and trading teams. Operating on its own Cosmos-based Layer 1 chain with gasless trading and self-custody, it has processed over $1.55 trillion in lifetime volume.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
dYdX industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Decentralized Cryptocurrency Exchange
- NAICS
- Securities and Commodity Exchanges (523210), Commodity Contracts Intermediation (52316)
- SIC
- Security & Commodity Brokers, Dealers, Exchanges & Services (6200), Commodity Contracts Brokers & Dealers (6221)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Perpetuals & Derivatives DEXs (FSADABAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- DEX Aggregators & Smart Order Routing (FSADABAC), DEX Aggregation & On-Chain Execution (routing, RFQ, intent-based trading) (FSAPAEAD), Decentralized Derivatives (perps, options, futures, synthetics) (FSAPAEAC)
Keywords
Where dYdX is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
dYdX business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Trading Fees (Protocol Fees): dYdX charges trading fees on perpetuals: 10-20 bps for takers and 5-10 bps for makers. Fee tiers are based on trading volume, with higher volume traders receiving better rates. These fees are the primary revenue stream for the protocol.
- Protocol Fee Distribution: 100% of protocol revenue is distributed to ecosystem participants. As of November 2025, 75% goes to DYDX buybacks, 5% to Treasury SubDAO, 5% to MegaVault, and remaining to staking rewards.
- Partner Revenue Share: Governance-approved partners can earn a percentage of trading fees generated by orders routed through their platforms. This creates a sustainable framework for ecosystem growth.
- Builder Codes: External parties can submit orders with builder codes and collect fees for building and routing orders. Fees are added on top of each fill, no governance proposal required.
- DYDX Token Economics: Token buyback program converts protocol fees into DYDX repurchases, with purchased tokens staked to support network security. All token unlocks set to conclude by June 2026.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Standard perpetual trading fees |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Fee-free trading incentives |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Fee tier discounts based on volume |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels9 records
Marketing channels8 records
dYdX product offering
Product offeringCore offering
dYdX is a decentralized exchange protocol built on its own Cosmos SDK-based Layer 1 blockchain (dYdX Chain) that enables perpetual futures, spot, margin trading, and prediction markets across 200+ markets. The protocol runs an off-chain orderbook and matching engine with no gas fees, charging transaction-based protocol fees on executed trades. It offers self-custody, deep liquidity, advanced order types, and institutional-grade execution accessible via web, mobile, Telegram, and API.
Product overview
dYdX is a decentralized exchange protocol and ecosystem offering perpetual futures trading, spot trading, and prediction markets. The core product is the dYdX Exchange protocol operating on the dYdX Chain (a Cosmos-based Layer 1 blockchain), which provides deep liquidity and institutional-grade trading infrastructure. The ecosystem includes mobile applications (iOS/Android), the Telegram-based Pocket Pro Bot for social trading, Solana Spot Trading integration, and MegaVault for liquidity provision. Incentive programs include the Surge trading competition program with fee rebates and rewards, the DYDX Buyback Program, Partner Revenue Share, and Trading Leagues. The protocol supports over 200 markets with advanced order types, and integrates with third-party platforms including Crypto.com, THORWallet, QuantConnect, and various fiat onramps. The native DYDX token powers governance and network security.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- MegaVault: A liquidity solution for dYdX Chain that enables users to deposit USDC and receive yield.
- Surge
- Trading Leagues
- Pocket Protector
- dYdX Unlimited
- Pocket Pro Bot
Products and services
- dYdX Exchange (Core Protocol)
- Solana Spot Trading
- Prediction Markets
- MegaVault
- Pocket Pro Bot
- dYdX Mobile App
- dYdX Trading API
Quantifiable outcome
- Trading volume increased 2-3x after fee holiday implementation on BTC-USD and SOL-USD markets
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use dYdX
Customer profileSegments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
dYdX technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration16 records
Feature8 records
dYdX partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Pyth NetworkcoredYdX is an early adopter of Pyth Network's 24/7 indices for US stocks, gold, silver, and crude oil. This enables around-the-clock trading on dYdX, supporting perpetual futures, tokenized assets, and derivatives products.
- VoltradecoreTrading competition partnership with Voltrade for RWA trading competitions. Voltrade users can trade PAXG-USD, XAG-USD, and WTI-USD perpetual markets on dYdX with $5,000 prize pools and daily lottery rewards.
- THORWalletcoreTHORWallet integrated dYdX's decentralized perpetual trading protocol, enabling users to trade over 200 markets with leverage without risking custody of assets. Includes $165,000 USDC trading competition and ongoing incentives.
- Crypto.comcoreCrypto.com Onchain Wallet integration provides access to dYdX perpetuals trading. Users can deposit USDC, trade perpetuals, and manage positions within the Crypto.com app. Hosts Onchain Royale trading competitions with up to $20,000 prizes.
- QuantConnectcoreQuantConnect integration enables algorithmic traders to research, backtest, and deploy trading strategies on dYdX. The LEAN engine handles all communication with dYdX API, providing stable infrastructure for live trading.
- CoinbasecoreCoinbase integration enables users to deposit and withdraw funds directly to their dYdX wallet address via Coinbase exchange, simplifying onboarding for new users.
- Skip ProtocolcoreSkip Protocol developed the MEV dashboard for dYdX, highlighting validator behavior and MEV extraction. Also part of the market maker ecosystem for the protocol.
- Circle (CCTP on Noble)coreCircle's Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol (CCTP) on Noble enables users to send USDC from other chains directly to dYdX Chain in a simple and secure manner.
- Pocket ProtectorcoredYdX acquired Pocket Protector, a team known for creating a social-first trading app on Solana. The acquisition aims to expand dYdX's product offerings and leverage Pocket Protector's technology to enhance growth and market presence. Powers the Telegram-based Pocket Pro Bot.
- Chaos LabsminorChaos Labs developed governance proposals for trading reward distributions, including the $5M season 1 launch incentives distribution to traders.
Scale indicators15 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
dYdX competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Hyperliquid: Hyperliquid is the dominant decentralized perpetual futures exchange, built on its own L1 blockchain with an on-chain orderbook. It directly competes with dYdX for the same algorithmic and pro trader audience and is the primary reason for dYdX's market share decline from 73% to 7%.
- GMX: GMX is a decentralized perpetual futures exchange originally on Arbitrum/Avalanche using a GLP liquidity model rather than an orderbook. It serves similar pro and DeFi-native traders but competes on a different mechanism, making it a comparable perps DEX peer.
- Aevo: Aevo is a decentralized exchange for perpetual futures and options built on a custom rollup, with an off-chain orderbook matching dYdX's architecture. It targets similar institutional and pro trading use cases in DeFi.
- Drift Protocol: Drift is a leading Solana-based perpetual futures DEX with a vAMM and orderbook hybrid model. As dYdX launches Solana spot, Drift represents the incumbent on-chain perpetuals venue on that chain with overlapping retail and DeFi-native traders.
- Perpetual Protocol: Perpetual Protocol is a decentralized perpetual futures exchange that migrated to a v3 orderbook-based architecture on Arbitrum. It directly competes for the same on-chain perpetuals trading audience as dYdX with comparable product offerings.
- Synthetix: Synthetix is a decentralized derivatives protocol on Optimism that powers perpetuals via its synthetic asset infrastructure. It serves as both a peer and a complementary layer for some DEX perps venues, comparable to dYdX's derivatives focus.
Emerging players
- Jupiter Perps: Jupiter Perps is the perpetual futures product from Jupiter, the leading Solana DEX aggregator. It leverages Jupiter's massive user base and routing layer to compete in Solana perpetuals, overlapping with dYdX's newly launched Solana spot footprint.
Broad incumbents
- Binance: Binance is the world's largest centralized cryptocurrency exchange, offering deep perpetual futures liquidity that competes with dYdX for high-volume derivatives traders. It operates a much broader portfolio but represents the primary alternative venue dYdX users compare against.
- Bybit: Bybit is a top centralized derivatives exchange known for perpetual futures and deep liquidity. As a broader incumbent, it competes with dYdX for the same pro and algorithmic trader segment that values execution quality and low fees.
- OKX: OKX is a major centralized exchange with significant perpetual futures market share and a Web3 wallet product. It competes with dYdX across both centralized perpetuals trading and on-chain DeFi infrastructure.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
dYdX social profiles
Digital presencedYdX financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
dYdX leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles8 records
dYdX subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
dYdX funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds5 records
Investors37 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
dYdX M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A1 record
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about dYdX
What does dYdX do?
dYdX is a decentralized exchange protocol built on its own Cosmos SDK-based Layer 1 blockchain (dYdX Chain) that enables perpetual futures, spot, margin trading, and prediction markets across 200+ markets. The protocol runs an off-chain orderbook and matching engine with no gas fees, charging transaction-based protocol fees on executed trades. It offers self-custody, deep liquidity, advanced order types, and institutional-grade execution accessible via web, mobile, Telegram, and API.
Is dYdX a public or private company?
dYdX is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was dYdX founded?
dYdX was founded in 2017. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is dYdX based?
dYdX is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does dYdX make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Trading Fees (Protocol Fees) is the primary driver. The others are protocol Fee Distribution, partner Revenue Share, builder Codes and DYDX Token Economics.
Who are dYdX's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Hyperliquid, GMX, Aevo, Drift Protocol, Perpetual Protocol and Synthetix. Jupiter Perps is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are Binance, Bybit and OKX.
Does dYdX have an API?
Yes. dYdX provides a comprehensive API for developers to integrate trading functionality. The platform offers REST and WebSocket APIs through its Indexer service, gRPC endpoints for blockchain interaction, and official client libraries. Developers can access order book data, trade execution, account management, subaccount tracking, fills data, and builder code/revenue share information via API endpoints. Developer documentation is at docs.dydx.xyz.
What industry is dYdX in?
dYdX's product category is Decentralized Cryptocurrency Exchange. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSADABAE, Perpetuals & Derivatives DEXs, with a secondary code of FSADABAC, DEX Aggregators & Smart Order Routing. Its NAICS code is 523210 and its SIC code is 6200.