Key Takeaways
- In January 2025, Ethereum DEXs recorded $86.01 billion in trading volumes; Solana DEXs recorded $258.48 billion.
- Daily Solana DEX volumes hit an ATH of $35.89 billion on Jan. 15, 2025.
- The altcoin market dropped around 15% of its market cap in the past month, falling from a January peak of $1.51 trillion to $1.26 trillion.
Ethereum’s (ETH) decentralized exchange (DEX) trading volumes have hit a 2-year high following a lackluster 2024.
Meanwhile, Solana (SOL) DEX volumes continue to shatter records.
Ethereum DEX Performance
As per DeFi Llama, Ethereum DEX volumes hit a 2-year high of $7.63 billion on Feb. 3, 2025. Its previous high was $11.12 billion on March 11, 2023.
Between 2023 and 2024, daily ETH DEX volumes trailed $1.5 billion on average. In 2024, this figure picked up toward the $2 billion range but stumbled throughout most of the year.
On Aug. 5, 2024, ETH DEX volumes topped $7.33 billion, though this quickly slumped back to an average of around $1.5 billion in the days and weeks that followed.
The bullish sentiment that swelled after Donald Trump’s nomination as U.S. president gave ETH DEXs a modest boost, allowing them to capture volumes in the $2 billion to $3 billion range regularly.
Overall, ETH and its ecosystem underwhelmed the crypto scene throughout 2024 with lackluster price performance.
Despite the approval of spot ETH exchange-traded funds (ETFs), the long-awaited “Dencun” upgrade, and a renewed bullish sentiment with Trump in the White House, ETH seems to have fallen behind.
SOL Overperforms
On the other hand, Solana (SOL) DEXs have consistently recorded daily volumes exceeding $2 billion. In the past 24 hours, they’ve notched $7.8 billion in trading volumes.
Last year, Solana-based DEX trading volumes skyrocketed following the rise of memecoin-creating platform pump.fun, which served as the bedrock of Solana’s on-chain activity surge throughout 2024.
On Jan. 1, 2024, SOL DEX daily volumes totaled $545.72 million, peaking at $7.14 billion on Nov. 18.
There appears to be no sign of slowing down either, as on Jan. 18, 2025, volumes reached a record-breaking $35.89 billion thanks to the launch of Trump’s official memecoin (TRUMP).
Eddie is a gaming and crypto writer at CCN. Covering the often weird and wonderful world of Web3 with an adoring, but skeptical eye.
Prior to CCN, Eddie has spent the past seven years working his way through the crypto, finance, and technology industry. He began with PR and journalism with Bitcoin PR Buzz and BitcoinNews.com, eventually working his way to become a copywriter with a dozen firms, including the likes of Polkadot before returning to journalism in 2023.
Having studied Radio production and journalism at University in the UK, Eddie spent a few years making podcasts and presenting on a local London radio station as he built up his writing chops.
A lifelong skateboarder, Eddie can often be found at the skatepark or touring the streets looking for something new to try. That, or kicking back playing JRPGs on his original PSP.
