Solana perp volume explodes 65% amid shrinking spot activity
Solana's perpetual futures trading volume jumped 65.29% to nearly $9 billion in the week ending November 10, driven primarily by GMTrade which accounted for 77% of this activity.
According to DefiLlama's Solana dashboard data, the platform's tracked weekly perpetuals turnover reached nearly $9 billion as of November 10, marking a 65.29% increase from the previous week. This surge was concentrated at GMTrade, which contributed approximately $7 billion to the total, representing about 77% of all reported perpetuals volume on the platform.
The growth in derivatives activity contrasts sharply with other market indicators. Over the same seven-day period, spot decentralized exchange turnover fell 5% to $9.9 billion, while stablecoin market capitalization declined 4.38% to $14.5 billion. This divergence suggests the trading revival may be more limited than the headline perpetuals numbers suggest.
Concentrated trading activity
GMTrade's dominance in Solana's perpetuals market is significant, with its weekly increase of approximately 105% being roughly as large as the entire table's gain. The platform allows SOL exposure backed by either wrapped SOL or USDC collateral, but this doesn't necessarily indicate new SOL purchases.
The turnover surge alone establishes neither rising open interest nor fresh SOL purchases.
GMTrade operates with GT points that can be earned through trading, liquidity provision, and referrals. These points have conditional treasury buybacks offering a route to USDC, and the platform's Season 2 terms tie a referrer's sellable quota to GT earned through referred traders' activity.
Outstanding positions as next test
As of November 10, GMTrade reported $174.9 million in open interest, compared to $235.1 million for the entire Solana perpetuals table. Open interest measures outstanding positions, while turnover reflects the notional value traded during a period.
The platform's connection to GMX extends beyond branding, with GM Labs confirming GMX Solana's integration into GMX in a September governance post. However, GT points remain distinct from the GMX token, and Solana-side buybacks are reportedly adding GMX to the staking rewards pool.
The next test will be whether the trading incentives translate to sustained open interest and broader market activity, or if the surge is primarily a response to temporary rewards programs.
Related
