The growth logic behind Pacifica's five-month trading volume exceeding 100 billion and the lowest point cost of $0.3

Solana Ecosystem Perpetual Contract Trading Platform Pacifica has achieved a trading volume leap from 2 billion USD to 100 billion USD in just five months. Behind this achievement are not only the platform’s own operational strategies but also reflect changes in the competitive landscape of the Perp DEX market. At the same time, its minimum point acquisition cost of 0.3 USD is sending a signal: the competition to attract users through incentive mechanisms and to capture market share has become fierce.

The True Face of the Trading Volume Breakthrough

According to the latest data, Pacifica’s trading volume has been steadily rising from a low point of 200 million USD in September 2025, with a total trading volume surpassing 100 billion USD in five months, averaging about 20 billion USD per month. While this figure looks impressive, we need to understand its significance more objectively within the entire Perp DEX market.

Based on the annual data comparison from relevant sources in 2025:

Growth Rate vs. Absolute Scale

In terms of growth rate, Pacifica’s 500-fold increase over five months is indeed impressive. However, it is important to note that Pacifica only went live on its mainnet in June last year, and there was no trading volume in the first half of 2025. The 820 billion USD annual figure mainly comes from four months of rapid growth after entering September. In other words, the true period of rapid growth was only four months.

More importantly, from an absolute scale perspective, Pacifica is still in the追赶 (catch-up) stage. Hyperliquid’s annual trading volume is 35 times that of Pacifica, and even compared to fifth-ranked ApeX, Pacifica’s trading volume is only about 24%. This indicates that although the growth rate is fast, its market share remains relatively small.

Insights into the Current Market Position

Recent 24-hour trading volume data better reflect the platform’s real-time competitiveness. As of January 20, Pacifica’s 24-hour trading volume was approximately 922 million USD, ranking mid-to-lower among Perp DEXs. In comparison, Hyperliquid’s same-period volume was 6.36 billion USD, Aster’s 4.66 billion USD, and Lighter’s 3.36 billion USD.

This gap indicates that while Pacifica’s growth momentum is good, there is still a long way to go to truly become a top-tier platform.

The Competitive Significance of the Point Incentive Mechanism

Pacifica concluded a 21-day fee halving promotion on January 20. Currently, users can earn up to 23% point bonuses through continuous trading, plus an additional 5% bonus via invitation links, reducing the cost per point to around 0.301 USD.

The Practical Significance of Cost Advantage

A point cost of 0.3 USD seems cheap, but this price is based on users meeting the following conditions simultaneously:

• Maintaining continuous trading to earn the maximum 23% bonus
• Using an invitation link to gain an additional 5% bonus

This means that users who truly achieve a 0.3 USD cost are active traders with access to channels. For ordinary users, the actual cost will be higher.

The Logic Behind the Incentive Mechanism

The frequent launch of incentive activities (fee halving, point bonuses, invitation rewards) by Pacifica reflects a basic reality: emerging Perp DEX platforms need subsidies to compete for users. This is quite common in the market.

However, this also raises a question: how long can these incentives last? Once the incentives decrease, will user stickiness decline? This is a challenge faced by all emerging Perp DEXs.

Evaluation of Project Development Stages

From the timeline, Pacifica’s development can be divided into three stages:

• First half of 2025: Mainnet launch, cold start phase
• Before September 2025: Slow accumulation, only 200 million USD in trading volume
• September 2025 to present: Rapid growth, surpassing 100 billion USD in five months

This trajectory indicates that after September, Pacifica adopted more aggressive market strategies, including incentive activities and community operations. These strategies have been effective in the short term, but whether they can translate into long-term user retention and platform value remains to be seen.

Summary

Pacifica’s breakthrough to 100 billion USD in trading volume is a milestone worth noting, but it should be viewed rationally. In terms of growth speed, the platform is indeed developing rapidly; in market share, it is still chasing top-tier platforms. Although the point incentive mechanism is attractive, fundamentally, the platform is using real money to attract users, and the sustainability of this model warrants observation.

For users, participating in Pacifica’s airdrop plans requires recognizing a fact: behind the low point costs is the platform’s subsidies during its rapid expansion phase. When these subsidies end and the ultimate value of points is determined, these are all issues that need careful consideration.