2026-01-12 12:34:36

The true competition in the perpetual DEX track ultimately boils down to resources and ecological support.

Hyperliquid is a special case — with its product and operational strength, it has established a foothold in the Arbitrum ecosystem, thereby reinforcing the narrative of its chain. But other perpetual DEX projects haven't been so lucky.

Aster's growth trajectory best illustrates the issue. During the APX era, it was obscure and received little market attention. It wasn't until it gained strategic support from BNB Chain and major investors that trading volume experienced a real explosive growth — the roles of exchange resources, on-chain traffic tilt, and ecological incentives are self-evident.

Although the Base chain is new, as a public chain endorsed by Coinbase, it already has the capacity to rival BNB Chain in terms of resource allocation from centralized exchanges. This determines who can stand out in the perpetual DEX competition. Ecological prosperity has always required genuine investment from ecosystem partners — whether through chain-level incentives or exchange listing support.

ARB-2,52%

ASTER-1,23%

BNB1,08%

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LadderToolGuy

· 01-13 09:30

Basically, it's big players eating meat while small projects drink soup. --- Hyperliquid is truly the chosen one; it would have disappeared long ago in a different ecosystem. --- That part about APX made me uncomfortable; kneeling and sucking up for a few months to boost traffic is hilarious. --- Now, Base is just waiting for Coinbase to really start investing money. --- Resource wars are pointless; it all depends on who has the richer backer. --- Perpetual DEXs are just that—ecosystem building = a money-spending competition, nothing else. --- Aster's comeback depends on funding; is that really called competitiveness? --- Always telling stories, but in the end, it all comes down to the number of funding rounds.

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ser_ngmi

· 01-12 13:38

Basically, it's all about playing the capital game. No matter how awesome a project is without support, it still has to lie low. Hyperliquid is lucky, and Aster only turned around thanks to the backing of BSC's big boss. That's the real story. Will Base really catch up? I'm scared. Resource allocation decides everything; product strength is just a joke. The crypto world is this pathetic—ecological prosperity = money spending prosperity, yet some people still try to sell me on product quality.

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WagmiAnon

· 01-12 12:52

Hyperliquid is truly an outlier, relying on product strength to crush resource disadvantages. Basically, it's all about who has more funding from their parents. Aster's turnaround was entirely driven by BNB Chain. Now with Coinbase backing Base, it seems the next wave of opportunities for perpetual DEXs will depend on this chain. Money is the real power, and ecosystem development is a competition for funding. Arbitrum previously claimed to be the king of perpetual DEXs, but now... Resource allocation has long been standard practice; there's nothing new about it. So in the end, the ones making money are still those projects backed by big investors. Retail investors are truly helpless as bagholders.

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TradingNightmare

· 01-12 12:42

Basically, without resources, you're dead. Hyperliquid can win only because it's strong enough; everything else relies on parents throwing money. The Aster example is very typical. I hadn't heard of it during the APX period, so how did it suddenly succeed? It's all thanks to BNB Chain and the big players pouring in traffic incentives. If Base can truly compete with BNB, then the game of perpetual DEX will have to be rethought. To be honest, competing on product alone is useless; if the ecosystem side doesn't fund it, everything is pointless. It feels like this track is just a game for the rich second generation.

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BTCRetirementFund

· 01-12 12:35

Basically, it's great to have supportive parents; without resources, you simply can't get ahead. Hyperliquid's rise is thanks to Arbitrum's support, and it's even more obvious with Aster—just change the name and it takes off. That logic is a bit heartbreaking. Base is now just Coinbase's ATM; no one can stop the resource tilt... Perpetual DEXs are essentially a game of who you know.

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