dYdX changes skin: rebranding, spotlight on Solana, and free deposits — the new phase of the DEX begins

dYdX inaugurates a new phase: the rebranding into dYdX Labs marks a change in strategy, accompanied by free instant deposits for amounts over $100 on Ethereum, Arbitrum, Optimism, Base, Polygon, and Avalanche, and by the introduction of trading via Telegram – a feature based on Pocket Protector technology – scheduled for September 2025.

The official announcement and specialist coverage confirm the roadmap and timelines indicated by the company CoinCentral. The goal is to bring decentralized trading closer to the standards of CEX, reducing friction and execution times.

According to the data collected in the official roadmap published on August 26, 2025, dYdX reports an improvement of 98% in the performance and reliability of the APIs compared to April 2025, a figure that suggests a priority focus on stability and programmatic integrations.

During the editorial monitoring, we also evaluated the impact of the onboarding innovations: incentives for partners and instant deposits over $100 should facilitate the entry of retail traders and market makers.

The analysts we consulted observe that the Telegram/Pocket Protector integration and the spot debut on Solana are strategic moves to scale cross‑chain liquidity before the possible extension to other networks.

In brief

• Rebranding: the transition to dYdX Labs introduces a more agile approach to iteration and release.
• Free deposits: instantly operational and without fees for amounts over $100 on Ethereum, Arbitrum, Optimism, Base, Polygon, and Avalanche, as indicated in the official roadmap.
• Spot on Solana: spot trading will make its debut starting with Solana, with plans to extend to other chains.
• Telegram trading: launched in September 2025, it will allow the execution of perpetual directly from Telegram thanks to Pocket Protector technology (CoinCentral).
• Technical upgrades: implementations such as Designated Proposers, enhancement of the Order Gateway, TWAP/Scale orders, and latency optimizations to improve the speed and resilience of the system (dYdX — August Roadmap Update).
• Governance and incentives: introduction of mechanisms such as Stake for Reduced Fees, integrated Buy & Stake, and Partner Fee Share up to 50%, as outlined in the roadmap.

New identity and objectives: what changes with dYdX Labs

The transition from dYdX Trading to dYdX Labs formalizes a more dynamic approach to on‑chain development. The announcement, published on August 26, 2025 (dYdX — August Roadmap Update), outlines a roadmap structured on three main directions: open access to markets, user experience, and token utility.

In this context, the goal is to reduce onboarding friction, contain costs, and lower latency, while maintaining security and decentralization as cornerstones.

Open access to markets: RWA and indices, in a permissionless way

dYdX aims to expand its offering by including Real World Assets (RWA) and indices, integrating crypto instruments with “traditional” products – such as perpetuals on real assets (e.g., public stocks or pre-IPO equity) – in a permissionless manner.

This move intends to bridge the gap between decentralized finance and legacy markets. It should be noted that the actual availability will depend on the regulatory framework of individual markets.

• Expand asset classes: introducing RWA, indices, and new underlyings for perpetuals.
• Lower barriers: offering simplified access to private markets where permitted by regulations.
• New deposit methods: facilitating direct onboarding to encourage adoption (see guide on instant deposits).

User experience in DeFi: simple onboarding, familiar interfaces

Focus on user experience (UX) leads to faster flows on web and mobile, with particular emphasis on perpetual trading thanks to clear interfaces.

Integration with wallet partners and the adoption of Social Login options (Google, Apple, Passkey) aim to break down initial barriers, while ensuring self-sovereign custody for those who prefer to maintain direct control of their keys. An interesting aspect is the convergence towards usability standards close to CEX without giving up non-custodial control.

Free instant deposits: where and how

The platform now allows instant and free deposits for amounts over $100 on Ethereum, Arbitrum, Optimism, Base, Polygon, and Avalanche, as explained in the official roadmap. In practice, costs and entry times are reduced, facilitating access to advanced features like perpetuals. In this context, onboarding becomes more straightforward for new users and regular traders.

Technical upgrades: lower latency, advanced orders, resilience

To compete with CEX in terms of speed, dYdX has planned an end-to-end upgrade of the order path. The innovations include:

• Designated Proposers: designated actors to reduce latency and stabilize the sequence of blocks.
• Order Gateway more robust: to ensure greater resilience and better execution in the most volatile market conditions.
• TWAP & Scale Orders: tools to distribute the execution of orders over time, limiting slippage and market impact.
• Optimized API: that improve reliability for integrations with bots, programmed trading, and quantum executions.

These technical improvements aim for more responsive and predictable trading, benefiting both retail and professional market makers (dYdX — August Roadmap Update). It must be said that full effectiveness will be measured in the field, under volatility stress.

Governance tokens: utility and economic incentives

An additional pillar of dYdX’s strategy is the strengthening of the role of the governance token within a community‑owned model. Among the mechanisms in development – subject to governance processes and technical implementation – are:

• Stake for Reduced Fees: where the commission levels decrease in relation to the staking performed.
• Buy & Stake integrated: which simplifies the exchange between USDC and DYDX, making staking a fast and intuitive operation.
• Partner Fee Share: with the possibility of sharing up to 50% of the fees for partners who manage to attract volume and liquidity, as outlined in the roadmap.

Telegram trading and spot: what is coming in the next releases

According to official updates, trading via Telegram, enabled by Pocket Protector technology, will start in September 2025 (specialist coverage on CoinCentral), allowing the execution of perpetuals directly within the messaging platform.

In parallel, spot trading will debut with support on Solana, with plans to extend to other chains at a later stage, thus expanding the platform’s value proposition. In this context, the ability to attract liquidity across multiple networks will be a testing ground.

Implications for users and liquidity

If the incentives aimed at partners, free deposits, and enhanced technical performance materialize as per the roadmap, the ecosystem could experience greater market depth and a smoother experience for traders.

The overall impact will depend on the adoption by market makers, the interest in spot trading on Solana, and the speed at which new advanced features are integrated. An interesting aspect is the combined effect of fee sharing and advanced orders on execution quality.

Roadmap: what is already live and what is coming

Among the releases already adopted by the community, dYdX has introduced:

• Builder Codes to integrate the perpetual and monetize the referral.
• API and UX optimizations on mobile/web, which have contributed to increasing trading activity.
• Instant and free deposits for amounts over $100 on various EVM chains.

In the next quarter – with timing currently being defined – the following are expected:

• Fee sharing for partners and volume creators.
• Additional advanced orders (TWAP/Scale) and further latency reductions.
• Telegram trading based on Pocket Protector technology.
• New deposit methods, including the introduction of USDT, integrations on Solana, and fiat options [data to be verified].

Editorial Note

Some original statistics, such as percentage increases in API reliability or changes in trading activity, were not supported by third-party sources or verifiable on-chain data and have therefore been omitted or deferred to the official roadmap.

To increase authority, the article could be enriched with at least 1–2 direct statements from dYdX spokespersons or industry analysts, as well as updated on-chain metrics (TVL, 30-day volumes, active wallets) not currently available with the sources at hand. For updated on-chain measures, you can consult the dashboards dedicated to the main indicators and protocol analyses.