Lighter has launched his public main network after eight months in private beta and introduces the competing eternal decentralized Exchange (Perp Dex) sector.
The company announced the rollout on October 2. Her platform allows cheap, low-late-perpetuals-trade with custom zero knowledge (ZK) circuits. These cryptographic systems validate transactions without exposing underlying data. They make verifiable matching and liquidations possible.
Public launch after beta
Built as an Ethereum layer 2 (L2), combines lighter high-frequency performance with onchain transparency. The project published audit reports that showed that his smart contracts and ZK infrastructure underwent external assessment. According to the team, this design balances scalability and security and keeps custody in user control.
The lighter public main network is live after 8 months of private bèta!
Trade for centuries with low costs and low latency on Ethereum L2 with adapted ZK circuits for verifiable matching and liquidations. Experience Onchain trade with the performance quality of high -frequency financing. pic.twitter.com/v1vwadvaa8
– Lighter (@Lighter_xyz) October 1, 2025
According to Defillama, the monthly trade volume exceeded for the first time in September $ 1 trillion. It achieved $ 1.143 trillion, almost an increase of almost 50% compared to the previous month.
Source: Defillama
Various protocols, including hyperliquid, aster and lighter, each registered more than $ 100 billion in volume of 30 days. This shows that decentralized derivatives are central to the liquidity on the chain.
User growth, stimuli and market risks
Lighter closed his first point season and started a second one, on the way to the end of 2025. Deposit racks and referral requirements have been lifted. An invited reward program continues. Accounts have been expanded to 188,000, with 50,000 daily active users compared to only 100 during early beta.
Retail traders are confronted with no costs. API-driven high-frequency companies now pay costs. The protocol has also introduced rules to curb the trade and Sybil attacks.
Robinhood CEO Vlad Teev called lighter a step forward for decentralized infrastructure. Bitmex founder Arthur Hayes framed it as an experiment in high-frequency financing on the chain. Proponents claim that these functions show maturity. Analysts at Gate claim that liquidation transparency and margin efficiency remain weaker than centralized standards.
Decentralized perpetuals processed more than $ 2.6 trillion in 2025. The same analysis marked continuous transparency problems. Another report noted that daily trade volumes above $ 100 billion systemic risk debates have driven. A separate study emphasized how airdrop stimuli, including those of lighter, influence user behavior.
Max Shannon van Bitwise previously told Beincrypto that the addressable market is already huge and could quickly expand if Dex’s share through centralized exchanges.
“CEXS processed around $ 16 trillion in the past year. Because leverage and trade Churn boost turnover, Perp Dex volumes can be faster than spot. If the market share rises from 30% to 50%, the annual DEX volumes can reach within five years. At 75% shares they can reach $ 30 Pile, ‘he said.
Gate analysts also identified five persistent risks in the sector. These include liquidity traces, hidden costs and inefficient margin systems. Whether lighter becomes a pillar of defi -liquidity or headwind can depend less on cryptographic design than how controllers and traders balance speed with trust.
The post lighter launches public mainstje with ZK-driven Perp Dex on Ethereum L2 first appeared on Beincrypto.
