The greater DeFi category has given birth to a variety of cryptocurrency market winners over the last year or so, but few have become as dominant as Uniswap.

Not only has the related UNI token performed incredibly well itself, Uniswap’s dominance has resulted in DEX volume growing more than 1,000 times from this point last year until now. What’s behind this explosive trend, and when – if ever – will it come to an end?

DEX Trading Volume Grows More Than 1000x In The Last Year

The “DeFi summer” of 2020 put the category on the map, and gave birth to the next wave of altcoin all-stars. During the tail end of the ultra-hot trend, Uniswap debuted its UNI token, which has since risen 700% from its November low.

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Demand for the token is soaring, signaling that there’s magic happening on the platform itself, and investors know it.

Uniswap dominates all other DEX platforms, driving the 1100% increase | Source: Dune Analytics

Uniswap has not only experienced rising trading volume as a result, total decentralized exchange (DEX) volumes have grown by over 1,100x from one year ago from $39.5 million, to $43.5 billion, according to the most recent monthly report from Arcane Research.

All major platforms ballooned from rising crypto market interest, but few have dominated like Uniswap has. Of January’s decentralized exchange volume breakdown, Uniswap represents 46% of the total volume, or nearly $20 billion.

The platform represents nearly half of all DEX volume | Source: Arcane Research

Decentralized exchanges such as Uniswap, allow investors to quickly and easily swap one token for another, all through a privately-owned Ethereum wallet.

The Rise And Dominance Of DeFi Platform Uniswap

Exchanges of this nature have existed for some time, but Uniswap’s unique take, Unicorn logo, and vibrant colors provided the allure that attracted investors to begin actually using them.

The brand power of Uniswap and the fact that it is thriving as a platform has put its native UNI token in similar demand. The buying frenzy has taken the token to as high as $13, up from under $1 per token.

Uniswap is up over 700% from the November low | Source: UNIUSDT on TradingView.com

A large portion of UNI tokens were initially given away for free. At the time, worth roughly $3 per token, the 400 free UNI were essentially the cryptocurrency market’s form of a stimulus check.

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What it stimulated, however, was the platform and token’s longevity, and cemented it as a major contender in the DeFi space. Decentralized exchange volume’s 1,100x year-over-year growth is proof of its impact, and it only just the beginning for the young, budding brand.

Featured image from Deposit Photos, Charts from TradingView.com