GMX vs Gains Network: Perpetuals on L2 & Multi-Chain

Multi-asset Liquidity Pool (GLP): Liquidity providers earn fees from all trades in a single, diversified basket. This matters for LPs seeking passive, multi-asset exposure. Zero Price Impact Trading: Trades are executed against the GLP pool, not an order book, enabling large positions without slippage. This is critical for whales and institutions.

Deepest Liquidity on L2: GMX v1 pioneered perpetuals on Arbitrum, achieving $2.5B+ in cumulative volume. This matters for traders prioritizing execution stability and minimal funding rate volatility. Established Track Record: Over two years of mainnet operation with no major security incidents, providing confidence for large capital deployment.

Synthetic Asset Design (gDAI vault): Trades synthetic forex, commodities, and equities (like Tesla, Gold) with real-world price feeds (Chainlink). This matters for traders seeking exposure beyond crypto. Higher Leverage: Offers up to 150x on major forex pairs vs. GMX's typical 30-50x, catering to aggressive strategies.

Polygon PoS & Arbitrum Deployment: Native on Polygon for ultra-low fees (<$0.01), with expansion to Arbitrum. This matters for retail traders and high-frequency strategies sensitive to gas costs. Single-Stake Earning (Dai Vault): Liquidity is pooled in a single, stablecoin (DAI) vault, simplifying yield and risk calculations for LPs.

You are a liquidity provider wanting diversified yield via GLP, a large-capital trader needing zero-slippage execution on crypto, or a protocol architect prioritizing the most proven, high-TV L2 perpetuals infrastructure.

You are a trader seeking synthetic stock/forex markets, a retail user on Polygon minimizing fees, or a developer building an app that requires exotic asset exposure beyond native crypto.

Multi-Chain Liquidity Pool: GMX v2 aggregates liquidity from Arbitrum and Avalanche into a single, unified pool (GLP). This creates a $500M+ TVL base, providing deep liquidity for large trades with minimal slippage. This matters for institutional traders and whales who need to execute sizable positions without moving the market.

Counterparty is the Pool: GLP holders (LPs) are the direct counterparty to all trades, earning fees but also bearing the P&L. During volatile markets or sustained trader profitability, LPs can experience drawdowns. This matters for capital allocators who must assess the asymmetric risk/reward of providing liquidity versus simple yield farming.

Synthetic Asset Model: gTrade uses Chainlink oracles and a DAI vault to mint synthetic assets, enabling 1,500+ unique trading pairs (including forex and equities) with no direct liquidity requirement for each pair. This matters for traders seeking exotic markets and integrators who want to offer niche assets without fragmented liquidity.

Oracle-Governed Execution: All prices and liquidations are managed by decentralized oracle networks. This introduces latency risks during extreme volatility and requires robust oracle infrastructure (e.g., Chainlink's low-latency oracles on Polygon zkEVM). This matters for protocol architects who must design for oracle failure modes and manage integration complexity across multiple data feeds.

Dominant TVL and volume: $500M+ in staked liquidity (GLP) across Arbitrum and Avalanche, facilitating deep markets and tight spreads. This matters for institutional traders and large positions where slippage is a primary cost.

Established PvP/Peer-to-Pool hybrid: Liquidity providers (GLP) act as the direct counterparty to traders, a model proven since 2021 on Arbitrum. This matters for teams prioritizing protocol stability and a straightforward fee structure over complex mechanisms.

Extensive multi-chain asset selection: Offers 200+ synthetic trading pairs, including forex (EUR/USD), commodities (Gold), and equities (TSLA), far beyond typical crypto pairs. This matters for traders seeking traditional market exposure or diversified portfolios on-chain.

Synthetic architecture with isolated risk: Uses Chainlink oracles and a single DAI vault, allowing for high leverage (up to 150x on crypto) without fragmented liquidity pools. This matters for retail and advanced traders maximizing potential returns on smaller capital.

Narrow crypto-centric focus: Primarily supports major crypto assets (BTC, ETH, LINK, etc.). This is a trade-off for teams whose users demand exposure to forex, stocks, or commodities without leaving DeFi.

Smaller liquidity pool: ~$30M in its DAI vault, which can lead to higher slippage on very large trades compared to GMX. This matters for funds or whales executing seven-figure orders, where execution quality is critical.