Metamask and Infinex Collaborate to Launch Hyperliquid Perpetual Contracts as Competition for Centralized Exchanges

Decentralized trading platforms MetaMask and Infinex have begun offering perpetual futures through their integration with Hyperliquid, positioning themselves as competitors to centralized exchanges in the rapidly expanding crypto perps market.

MetaMask’s integration with Hyperliquid launched on Wednesday, enabling users to engage with Hyperliquid’s decentralized perpetual swaps exchange directly through the MetaMask wallet.

MetaMask declared that this “significant milestone” advances its goal of becoming a comprehensive, self-custodial trading platform, aiming to capture market share from the centralized exchanges that have traditionally dominated the crypto perpetuals sector.

“By embedding the Hyperliquid engine directly into our wallet and optimizing it for mobile, we’re [offering] a seamless pathway for passive holders to transition into active traders,” MetaMask’s global product lead, Gal Eldar, told Cointelegraph.

“The opportunity is enormous. With these barriers minimized, the timing couldn’t be more opportune for MetaMask to offer a one-tap, onchain trading experience to our entire user base.”

On the other hand, Infinex integrated Hyperliquid for beta testing weeks ago and achieved over $100 million in trading volume within the initial four weeks. It launched for retail users of Infinex last week.

Infinex is a non-custodial decentralized finance front-end that debuted in mid-2024, while Hyperliquid stands out as the most liquid decentralized perps exchange available.

Decentralized perp volumes surpass $772 billion in September

Crypto perps have gained traction due to their continuous trading hours, high leverage, absence of expiration, and the chance to profit in both rising and falling markets — attracting primarily speculative traders seeking substantial returns with minimal holding time.

Decentralized perps trading volume has surged recently, exceeding $772 billion over the past month, including a record $59.5 billion on September 25, according to DefiLlama. The perps market is currently led by Hyperliquid, Aster, and Lighter.

Infinex records $100 million in perps pre-launch

Infinex founder Kain Warwick told Cointelegraph that his platform achieved more than $100 million in trading volume during the pre-launch phase of its Hyperliquid integration over four weeks.

This $100 million came from early project supporters known as Patrons and select traders, totaling around 200 individuals, Warwick noted.

MetaMask aims to provide a CEX-like experience with perps

Interacting with onchain perp platforms has often proven challenging for even seasoned crypto traders, as explained by the MetaMask executive to Cointelegraph.

“Users express interest, but they often abandon the process due to its complexity,” Eldar mentioned, detailing that users must first determine which protocol to use, locate a bridge that is safe, quick, and reasonably priced, only to discover they cannot transact due to not possessing the necessary gas token for blockspace.

“[They] realize the protocol strictly accepts one particular asset, necessitating the search for a DEX on that chain to convert before finally making deposits and trading,” Eldar stated. “For many users, this can mean 30 minutes of fruitless efforts, wasted fees, and a substantial amount of unnecessary stress.”

“Many in Web3 have come to accept this as standard. We don’t — and we can’t. We view it as a significant barrier to adoption, and we see it as our responsibility as a wallet to address it.”