Over the past decade, the number of crypto users has grown exponentially, with CEX and DEX developing in parallel to shape a diverse landscape. While CEX has expanded steadily, DEX has risen rapidly, driving the market ecosystem toward balance. Hacking incidents and cross-chain money laundering methods continue to evolve, alongside increasing wallet thefts. Leveraging global compliance frameworks and mature infrastructures, CEX maintains trust and institutional advantages. Looking ahead, CEX and DEX will coexist in the long term: CEX will remain the core gateway and compliance hub for mainstream users, while DEX will drive continuous ecosystem expansion through openness and innovation. Market growth will continue under a diversified architecture.
Key takeaways:
- Explosive user growth propels crypto into the mainstream financial system. Global crypto users have surpassed 670 million, rising exponentially since 2020. Penetration in emerging markets has significantly improved, becoming an important driver of crypto adoption and accelerating the development of DeFi and Web3 ecosystems.
- CEX and DEX advance side by side, forming a dual-track market infrastructure. Since 2021, the number of DEX users has surpassed that of CEX, and the total value locked (TVL) has steadily caught up. This reflects the market structure evolving from centralization to decentralization, with CEX transforming into the core gateway between real-world assets and on-chain activity.
- New token issuance concentrated on DEX, with both innovation and long-tail risks. Millions of new tokens are launched on DEX each year, driving rapid ecosystem diversification. However, project lifecycles are short, and "long-tail risks" remain high. CEX enhances token credibility through high-quality screening.
- With DEX trading volume and activity rising rapidly, user behaviors are shifting on-chain. After excluding wash trading, DEX accounts for 42% of global spot trading volume, closely approaching the level of CEX. This shows that users increasingly value on-chain transparency, self-custody, and the opportunity to participate in new assets at the earliest stage.
- Security incidents and compliance pressures intertwine, and platform mechanisms continue to evolve. From 2023 to 2025, multiple security incidents occurred in the DEX and wallet space, with fund flow paths becoming increasingly complex and compliance issues drawing widespread attention. CEX continues to strengthen its trust foundation through global compliance arrangements, while DEX remains in the exploration stage of institutional construction and governance mechanisms, with related discussions gradually emerging.
Explore the full report → Gate Research: The Ecosystem Landscape and Convergence Trends of CEX and DEX
Gate Research is a comprehensive blockchain and cryptocurrency research platform that provides readers with in-depth content, including technical analysis, market insights, market reviews, industry research, trend forecasts, and macroeconomic policy analysis.
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