as reported by CryptoNews.>
The
Virtuals Protocol
(VIRTUAL) experienced a significant price surge at the start of October 2025, fueled by a widespread uptick in decentralized finance (DeFi) engagement and renewed trust in on-chain derivatives markets. Decentralized perpetual exchanges (DEXs) reached unprecedented milestones, with monthly trading volumes exceeding $1 trillion for the first time, based on data from DeFiLlama and CryptoNews. Hyperliquid, a top DEX, led this growth, handling more than $317 billion in trades and achieving a record daily volume of $78 billion. This surge highlights the increasing appetite for leveraged crypto trading and a migration toward decentralized platforms, positioning protocols like Virtuals to benefit from the sector’s rapid growth.
according to FXStreet’s outlook.>
The boom in decentralized perpetual trading is being propelled by platforms that offer fast execution, deep liquidity, and easy access. Hyperliquid’s achievements have intensified competition, with other players like
Aster
and edgeX also posting notable increases in trading activity, as highlighted by CryptoNews. In addition, Astros has recently introduced a perpetual DEX on the
Sui
blockchain, focusing on a unified financial system that connects trading, lending, and liquidity services, according to
a report from The Block
. These advancements are closing the gap between decentralized and centralized exchanges (CEXs), with DEXs now making up 26% of the crypto-derivatives market—a significant rise from last year’s single-digit percentages. Virtuals, which provides similar on-chain derivatives solutions, is likely benefiting from this movement as traders increasingly turn to decentralized options over traditional CEXs.
as noted in a Bitcoinist piece.>
Despite the positive outlook, the DeFi industry still faces challenges such as security flaws and unpredictable markets. Bunni DEX, built on
Uniswap
V4, collapsed following an $8.4 million exploit, underscoring the dangers of unproven smart contract code, as detailed in the Bitcoinist article. Nevertheless, the overall market remains robust. Pump.fun (PUMP), another DeFi-focused token, has demonstrated bullish momentum, trading above $0.0040 as the crypto sector recovers, according to FXStreet. Experts attribute this strength to better technical signals and a shift in investor preference toward high-leverage derivatives, a niche that Virtuals and similar protocols are well-equipped to serve.
as reported by Coinotag.>
The expansion of decentralized perpetual trading is also being driven by both institutional and retail investments. For example, Jupiter’s
JUP
token saw its Total Value Locked (TVL) climb to $3.36 billion, spurred by heightened protocol activity and perpetual trading, according to Coinotag. Likewise, Solana’s ecosystem has bounced back, with DeFi TVL exceeding $10 billion as network improvements attract more liquidity providers, as noted in
another Coinotag report
. These trends point to a more mature DeFi environment, where protocols like Virtuals can take advantage of expanding infrastructure and a growing user base to maintain upward price momentum.
Although regulatory ambiguity and security threats remain ongoing concerns, current trends indicate that decentralized derivatives are set to remain a key driver of crypto sector innovation. The recent price rally of Virtuals mirrors a broader industry move toward autonomous on-chain ecosystems, where trading, lending, and staking are seamlessly integrated. As platforms such as Hyperliquid and Astros continue to grow, demand for interoperable solutions like Virtuals is expected to rise, further supporting its recent performance.
