Centralized exchange spot volume hits 9-month low while DEX usage grows

Monthly spot trading volume on centralized exchanges has fallen to its lowest level since September 2024, while decentralized trading platforms continued to to see rising volumes.

According to The Block's data dashboard, centralized exchanges recorded $1.07 trillion in spot trading volume in June, down from $1.47 trillion in May. 

The monthly spot trading volume from centralized platforms has been gradually declining since hitting a recent high of $2.94 trillion in December. Last month's volume marks a 63.6% drop from that peak.

"While Bitcoin has remained steady and not far from its all-time highs, the altcoin market has struggled, with most alts — including ETH — still down nearly 40% from their peaks," said Min Jung, research analyst at Presto Research. "This points to a market largely driven by institutional buying of bitcoin, while retail participation — which typically favors altcoins — remains relatively subdued."

Jung added that the current crypto market movement is centered around institutional allocations into bitcoin, with stablecoins, tokenized stocks and corporate treasuries playing a secondary role while previous bull cycles were mostly retail-driven.

Monthly volume on decentralized exchanges, on the other hand, grew in June to record $390 billion, according to DefiLlama data. Following a local high in January, DEX volume contracted, and began a recovery in May that extended into June.

Notably, the DEX to CEX spot trading volume rose to a new record high of 29%, indicating a surge of interest in decentralized platforms over centralized exchanges. The DEX to CEX futures trade volume ratio also hit a new all-time high of 8% in June.

"There has been a rise in DEX activity, driven by the success of platforms like Hyperliquid and the emergence of more DEXs offering better user experiences," said Jung. "However, it’s also clear that much of this activity comes from traders chasing airdrops and points programs."

Meanwhile, Vincent Liu, CIO of Kronos Research, said that traders are turning to DEXs due to trust erosion and lower fees. "DEXs are gaining real traction, not just from speculation but from true utility: the freedom to trade anything, self-custody, and early access. Traders are simply getting more strategic," said Liu.