Equity perpetual futures on major digital asset exchanges reached about $250 billion in monthly volume in July. That marks a seventeenfold jump from roughly $15 billion in April, showing how quickly the market has expanded in just three months.

According to analytics firm CryptoQuant, that expansion has turned crypto exchanges into round-the-clock venues for contracts linked to traditional equities. The products give users continuous access to familiar stocks without being limited by conventional market trading hours.

Binance Leads as AI and Chip Stocks Dominate Volume

Binance remained the dominant venue in July, handling roughly $193 billion in equity perpetual futures volume, equivalent to about 76% of the total market. Bitfer, Bybit, and Gate followed at a considerable distance.

CryptoQuant identified Gate as the fastest-growing venue during the month. Its equity perpetual futures volume increased by about 308% from June, compared with 176% for Bybit and 59% for Binance. The report also noted that Gate had recorded consecutive monthly growth since May.

Despite the broader rise in activity, trading remains concentrated across a small group of technology and semiconductor-related assets. SanDisk, SK Hynix, Micron, and the leveraged semiconductor ETF SOXL made up the core of what analysts describe as the AI-memory complex.

On Gate, in particular, the concentration was especially pronounced. SanDisk and SK Hynix together accounted for 53% of the exchange’s total equity perpetual futures volume last month.

Beyond Gate, the broader market also remained focused on companies linked to artificial intelligence and memory chips. This narrow concentration has made these assets the main focus of activity across the emerging equity perpetual market.

Crypto Platforms Push Beyond Traditional Assets

The products also reflect a broader shift in how digital asset exchanges are expanding beyond traditional cryptocurrency markets. Rather than focusing only on assets such as BTC and Ether, exchanges are offering perpetual contracts linked to traditional financial instruments.

At the same time, the approach allows crypto-native capital to access equity-linked products through infrastructure that operates continuously. The contracts therefore provide exposure to selected traditional assets while retaining the always-on structure associated with crypto markets.

However, CryptoQuant’s report shows a market that has expanded rapidly while remaining focused on a narrow group of assets. Whether activity eventually spreads across a broader range of equity perpetual contracts will depend on how the market develops beyond its current concentration.

Source: CryptoPotato