Key Takeaways:
Raydium captured 50.5% of Solana DEX trading volume in Q3, outperforming competitors.
Raydium leads all DEXs in meme coin trading volume.
Even if Raydium surpasses Uniswap, it will still face competition from Aerodrome, a DEX on the Base blockchain.
Raydium (RAY) has become the main hub for meme coins on Solana (SOL), positioning the blockchain as one of the winners in crypto in 2024, with high revenue and trading volume.
Raydium entered the crypto market in February 2021. The decentralized exchange (DEX), which operates on Solana, focuses on automated market making (AMM) and providing liquidity for the ecosystem.
Raydium is currently second in trading volume among decentralized exchanges, with Uniswap (UNI) maintaining first place. However, the gap is minimal: $4.589 billion versus $4.543 billion in volume as of Jan. 28.
Source: DeFiLlama
Raydium occasionally overtakes Uniswap but struggles to maintain the lead.
Raydium is also emerging as the primary Solana DEX, surpassing competitors like Orca and Meteora within the ecosystem. According to Messari, Raydium accounted for 50.5% of Solana DEX trading volume in Q3, while Orca held 24.3%.
Source: Messari
One factor contributing to Raydium’s dominance within the Solana ecosystem is its support for meme coins. Data from GeckoTerminal shows that Raydium leads in trading volume across all DEXs (meme coins trading). In comparison, Uniswap ranks fourth with a volume of $1.3 billion.
This demonstrates that Solana has become the leading blockchain for both DEXs and the meme coin market.
Source: GeckoTerminal
How Solana Fuels Raydium’s Growth, And Vice Versa
Solana’s success as a leading blockchain in decentralized finance (DeFi) and beyond is closely tied to the growth of its ecosystem projects. Put simply, the more successful Solana becomes, the greater its chances of surviving in the dApp race (among those operating on it).
Raydium complements Solana by providing additional liquidity and transactions, boosting trading volumes and fees.
Meme coins have played a significant role in Solana’s recent growth. This trend began in 2024 and is likely to continue through 2025.
In Q4 2024, Solana outperformed other blockchains in dApp-generated revenue. According to Blockworks Research, this trend extended into January 2025, partly driven by the inauguration of Donald Trump and the associated hype around the meme coin Official Trump (TRUMP).
Source: Blockworks Research
On Jan. 21, Solana accounted for 73.3% of all crypto app revenue. Researcher Aylo noted that Solana’s dominance continues to grow, surpassing Ethereum (ETH):
“They are winning on REV, users, txns, and TVL will naturally keep growing, as it is a lagging indicator of network adoption. We are seeing incredible growth in stablecoins on Solana as well. $3.75B USDC was issued on Solana in the past week.”
Meme coin mania, which began in late 2024, remains strong. Examples include Moo Deng (MOODENG) and Neiro (NEIRO). The inauguration of President Trump amplified this trend.
Pump.fun, a launchpad on Solana, is a major driver of meme coin growth. On Jan. 24, the platform recorded $15.9 million in revenue, setting a new record. This growth is partly attributed to Vine Coin (VINE), which launched on the same day.
Pump.fun now generates more revenue for Solana than any other dApp.
Source: DeFiLlama
While meme coins can be launched on platforms like Pump.fun, they also require trading venues. Decentralized exchanges offer an advantage over centralized exchanges (CEXs), which are slower to list new tokens.
According to DeFiLlama, Solana leads other blockchains in DEX trading volume. The peak occurred during the U.S. presidential election but began earlier. On Jan. 18, Solana recorded $35.8 billion in DEX trading volume, compared to Ethereum’s $3.7 billion.
Source: DeFiLlama
Crypto researcher Ignas highlighted that Solana saw the highest net inflows for the week, totaling $153 million.
Will Raydium Become the Top DEX?
Uniswap launched in 2018 and has established itself as a leader in the DEX market. However, Raydium is narrowing the gap with its competitors.
According to Messari, Uniswap led the global volume share in Q3 2024 at 27.5%, while Raydium held second place at 10.5%. Raydium outpaced Uniswap in quarter-over-quarter (QoQ) growth, posting 134.5%, compared to Uniswap’s decline of 7.5%.
Even if Raydium overtakes Uniswap, it faces competition from Aerodrome (AERO), a DEX on the Base blockchain. Aerodrome ranked fourth in global volume share for Q3 but achieved the highest QoQ growth among DEXs at 235.4%.
Source: Messari
Uniswap is also making efforts to maintain its lead. In 2024, the company introduced Unichain, a cross-chain solution aimed at addressing liquidity challenges in DeFi. The project is still under development but has received some positive feedback from the community.
Raydium’s growth is closely tied to the success of Solana, which has been thriving during the ongoing meme coin trend. However, this market presents ethical challenges, particularly with platforms like Pump.fun.
In addition to its meme coin activity, Solana is also advancing in the stablecoin market. This development could provide a fallback strategy if platforms like Pump.fun lose momentum and interest in meme coins declines.
The post Why Raydium Is Becoming the Leading Solana DEX appeared first on Cryptonews.
