Is the decentralized exchange really about to turn the tide?

This question sounds tempting, but the answer isn't that simple.

From a negligible market share in 2020 to a surge in trading volume today, the presence of DEXs is indeed rapidly increasing. At first glance, it seems like the spring of decentralization has truly arrived. But don’t rush to conclusions—things might not be unfolding as quickly as they appear.

Instead of obsessing over the old clichés about complex processes and poor user experience, let’s look at what the data says.

**2025: The Explosion of DEX Liquidity**

In the past two years, DEX growth was slow, but 2025 is on a completely different level. In terms of trading volume, DEXs have nearly quadrupled the total transaction value of the past few years—this isn’t minor growth; it’s a qualitative leap.

But is this growth really sudden? Not entirely.

Breaking down quarterly data, the activity and liquidity of DEXs in Q4 2024 already started to accelerate noticeably, and 2025 simply fully ignited this momentum. In other words, the real turning point occurred in Q4 2024, and 2025 just continued to amplify this trend.

What does this mean? It indicates that this wave of growth in decentralized exchanges is not a flash in the pan but has a solid foundation, laid out since last year.