Gains Trade excels at providing a capital-efficient, low-slippage experience by utilizing an on-chain order book model. This architecture allows for direct peer-to-peer matching of limit orders, which is ideal for sophisticated traders who require precise execution control and deep liquidity for large positions. For example, its deployment on Arbitrum leverages the chain's low transaction fees to make frequent order updates viable, a critical feature for active trading strategies.
LABS
Comparisons
Gains Trade vs. GMX
A technical comparison of two leading decentralized leveraged trading protocols, analyzing their core models, asset coverage, fee structures, and risk profiles for traders and liquidity providers.
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introduction
THE ANALYSIS
Introduction: Two Models for Decentralized Leverage
A technical breakdown of the order book versus pooled liquidity approaches for on-chain perpetual futures trading.
GMX takes a different approach by pioneering a multi-asset liquidity pool (GLP) model. Liquidity providers collectively back all trades, allowing traders to open leveraged positions with zero price impact and low fees directly from the pool. This results in a trade-off: while it offers unparalleled ease of entry and exit for most sizes, the returns for LPs are directly tied to the collective P&L of traders, introducing a unique risk-reward dynamic compared to passive yield models.
The key trade-off: If your protocol's priority is attracting professional traders who value granular order types, minimal slippage on large orders, and a familiar CEX-like interface, the order book model of Gains Trade is superior. Choose GMX's pooled liquidity model when your primary goal is maximizing accessibility and simplicity for a broad user base, offering one-click leverage with predictable fees, funded by a sustainable, if variable, yield source for liquidity providers.
tldr-summary
Gains Trade vs. GMX
TL;DR: Core Differentiators
Key architectural and economic trade-offs for CTOs evaluating perpetual DEX infrastructure.
01
Choose Gains Trade for...
Ultra-low fees & high leverage on L2s: Built natively on Arbitrum and Polygon, with fees as low as 0.02% and leverage up to 150x for major crypto pairs. This matters for high-frequency traders and capital-efficient strategies.
0.02%
Maker Fee
150x
Max Leverage
02
Choose Gains Trade for...
Diversified asset exposure: Offers synthetic trading on real-world assets (RWAs) like forex (EUR, GBP), commodities (Gold, Oil), and stock indices (SPX, NASDAQ). This matters for portfolios seeking non-correlated assets beyond crypto.
30+
Forex Pairs
03
Choose GMX for...
Deepest liquidity & battle-tested model: The largest perpetual DEX by TVL, using a unique multi-asset liquidity pool (GLP). This matters for institutional-sized orders and protocols requiring maximum capital efficiency and proven security.
$500M+
Protocol TVL
04
Choose GMX for...
Established ecosystem & composability: Core infrastructure for a vast ecosystem of yield vaults, auto-compounders, and integrated frontends. This matters for developers building on top of or integrating with decentralized perps.
50+
Integrated Protocols
PERPETUALS DEX HEAD-TO-HEAD
Feature Comparison: Gains Trade vs. GMX
Direct comparison of on-chain perpetual futures trading platforms.
| Metric / Feature | Gains Trade | GMX |
|---|---|---|
Trading Pairs (Crypto) | 10+ | 5 |
Native Asset Trading | ||
Avg. Open/Close Fee | 0.08% - 0.1% | 0.1% |
Max Leverage (Crypto) | 150x | 50x |
Oracle Provider | Chainlink | Chainlink + Pyth |
Primary Network | Arbitrum | Arbitrum, Avalanche |
Trading Volume (30D Avg.) | $200M+ | $1.5B+ |
Unique Funding Rate Model |
pros-cons-a
PERPETUAL DEX COMPARISON
Gains Trade vs. GMX: Pros and Cons
Key architectural and market differentiators for two leading on-chain perpetual trading protocols.
01
Gains Trade: Capital Efficiency
Unique multi-asset pools: Single liquidity pool (DAI) backs all trading pairs, reducing fragmentation. This enables higher leverage (up to 150x on crypto, 1000x on forex) by concentrating capital. This matters for traders seeking maximum leverage on exotic pairs like EUR/USD or Tesla stock.
150x
Max Crypto Leverage
1000x
Max Forex Leverage
02
Gains Trade: Asset Diversity
Broader market exposure: Supports crypto, forex (EUR, GBP, JPY), and real-world assets (stocks like TSLA, indices like SPX). This is powered by Chainlink oracles. This matters for traders wanting a single venue for crypto and traditional market speculation without KYC.
03
GMX: Deeper Liquidity & Adoption
Market leader in TVL and volume: Consistently holds >$500M in TVL across Arbitrum and Avalanche, facilitating large trades with minimal slippage. Higher integration with DeFi protocols (e.g., Pendle, Jones DAO). This matters for institutional-sized positions and protocols building on top of perp DEX infrastructure.
$500M+
Total Value Locked
04
GMX: Superior LP Returns & Model
Dual-token model (GMX/GLP): Liquidity providers (GLP holders) earn 70% of protocol fees and act as the direct counterparty to trades. Real yield is transparent and often >10% APY. This matters for passive capital seeking direct exposure to trading fee revenue with a proven, simple model.
05
Gains Trade: Centralized Risk
Admin key dependencies: Protocol has significant upgradeability and pausability controls. Oracle selection for exotic assets introduces centralization points. This matters for degens and protocols requiring maximally decentralized, immutable infrastructure.
06
GMX: Limited Market Scope
Crypto-centric only: Trades are limited to major cryptocurrencies (BTC, ETH, SOL, etc.). No exposure to forex, equities, or commodities. This matters for traders whose strategy depends on correlated or uncorrelated asset classes beyond crypto.
pros-cons-b
PROTOCOL COMPARISON
GMX vs. Gains Trade: Key Differentiators
A data-driven breakdown of the leading perpetual DEX contenders. Use this to decide based on your primary trading needs: capital efficiency or multi-asset exposure.
01
Choose GMX v2 for Capital Efficiency
Deep, concentrated liquidity pools on Arbitrum and Avalanche. GMX's unique GLP index pool allows LPs to earn fees from all trades, but concentrates risk. This model delivers up to 50x leverage with low slippage for major assets like ETH and BTC. Ideal for traders prioritizing low fees and high leverage on blue-chip crypto.
$400M+
TVL (Pool)
50x
Max Leverage
02
Choose Gains Trade for Asset Diversity
Unmatched range of tradable assets including forex (EUR, JPY), commodities (Gold, Oil), and stock indices (SPX, NASDAQ). Operates on Polygon and Arbitrum. This is the premier DEX for traders seeking crypto-native exposure to traditional markets without KYC. The trade-off is typically lower liquidity per pair compared to crypto-focused DEXs.
100+
Tradable Pairs
Forex & Stocks
Market Focus
03
GMX v2's Trade-Off: LP Composability Risk
Liquidity Providers are the counterparty. While earning multi-asset yield is attractive, LPs bear the direct risk of trader profits. The GLP token's value can decay during volatile, trending markets if traders are consistently profitable. This creates a different risk profile versus order book or isolated pool models.
04
Gains Trade's Trade-Off: Oracle Dependency & Fees
Heavy reliance on price oracles (Chainlink, Pyth) for all non-crypto assets. This introduces latency and potential oracle risk during extreme volatility. Furthermore, to sustain a wide array of markets, the protocol employs dynamic funding rates and fees that can be higher for exotic pairs to incentivize liquidity equilibrium.
CHOOSE YOUR PRIORITY
User Scenarios: When to Choose Which
GMX for High-Volume Traders
Verdict: The established liquidity leader for large positions. Strengths: Unmatched liquidity depth on Arbitrum and Avalanche, enabling large-cap trades with minimal slippage. The GLP pool provides a robust, multi-asset liquidity backbone. Lower price impact for trades over $100K is a key differentiator. Considerations: Trading fees are higher (open/close + borrow fees), and the platform is optimized for major assets (BTC, ETH, blue-chip altcoins).
Gains Trade for High-Volume Traders
Verdict: A compelling alternative for sophisticated strategies and altcoin exposure. Strengths: Significantly lower trading fees (as low as 0.08% for open/close) directly benefit high-frequency strategies. Supports a wider range of altcoins and synthetic indices (like Forex, Commodities). The gDAI vault offers a stablecoin-centric yield source. Considerations: TVL and liquidity depth for the largest caps may be lower than GMX, potentially affecting slippage on massive single trades.
GAINS TRADE VS. GMX
Cost Analysis: Fees and Rewards
Direct comparison of trading fees, reward structures, and capital efficiency for perpetual futures trading.
| Metric | Gains Trade | GMX |
|---|---|---|
Trading Fee (Open/Close) | 0.1% | 0.1% |
Borrowing Fee (Hourly) | 0.01% | 0.01% |
Liquidity Provider (LP) Fee | 0.0% | 10% of trading fees |
Reward Token for LPs | GNS | GMX + esGMX |
Max Leverage (Crypto) | 150x | 50x |
Native Chain | Polygon, Arbitrum | Arbitrum, Avalanche |
verdict
THE ANALYSIS
Final Verdict and Decision Framework
A data-driven breakdown to guide your choice between Gains Trade and GMX based on your protocol's core priorities.
Gains Trade excels at capital efficiency and composability because it utilizes a unique multi-asset pool design where all assets backstop all trades. This model, combined with its permissionless listing of any asset with a Chainlink price feed, allows for deep liquidity and low slippage on a vast array of synthetic assets. For example, its DAI vault consistently offers high APYs for liquidity providers by aggregating fees from trading pairs like BTC, ETH, and exotic altcoins, demonstrating efficient capital utilization.
GMX takes a different approach by leveraging a real-yield model backed by real assets via its GLP index. This results in a trade-off: while asset selection is more curated (e.g., BTC, ETH, ARB), the protocol offers unparalleled stability and proven scale, with a Total Value Locked (TVL) historically an order of magnitude larger than competitors. Its focus on major blue-chip assets and integrations with leading Arbitrum and Avalanche DeFi ecosystems has made it the dominant perpetuals DEX by volume.
The key trade-off: If your priority is maximum asset diversity, lower entry costs for new markets, and deep composability for novel derivatives, choose Gains Trade. Its architecture is built for rapid experimentation. If you prioritize battle-tested security, deep liquidity on core assets, and capturing fees from a massive, established user base, choose GMX. Its real-yield GLP model is the industry benchmark for sustainable, scalable perpetual trading.
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