Solana co-founder Anatoly “Toly” Yakovenko is backing a new perpetuals DEX idea that could become a serious rival to Hyperliquid. The move adds fresh heat to the fast-growing on-chain derivatives market, where speed, liquidity, and user experience now matter more than ever.
Hyperliquid has become one of the best-known names in onchain perpetual trading, but Solana’s ecosystem is now signaling that it wants a bigger role in this category. The key message from Toly is simple: Solana should have a native perp exchange built directly into its own network design.
Why This Matters
Perpetual futures, often called perps, let traders speculate on crypto prices without an expiry date. That makes them popular with active traders who want flexibility, leverage, and fast execution.
The problem is that many of the strongest perp platforms have grown outside Solana’s core system. Toly’s argument is that Solana needs an “atomically composable” perp DEX inside the SVM so apps can interact more smoothly without depending on bridges.
What Toly Wants to Build
The project discussed in reports is called Percolator, and it is designed as a Solana-native perpetual exchange. It is described as a sharded protocol with two main parts: a Router for margin and routing logic, and a Slab for matching and settlement.
This design is meant to improve performance while keeping the system self-custodial and onchain. In simple terms, that means traders would keep control of their funds while using a platform built for speed and efficient execution.
Challenge To Hyperliquid
Hyperliquid has gained attention because it has captured a large share of onchain perpetuals activity. Reports also note that its trading volume and revenue growth have made it a major benchmark for new rivals.
Solana’s answer is to lean into what it does best: low latency and composability. If a Solana-native perp DEX works as planned, it could attract traders and developers who want a faster experience inside the Solana ecosystem instead of moving funds elsewhere.
Market Impact For Traders
For traders, this development could mean more choice in how and where they trade perpetual contracts. More competition usually leads to better fees, better interfaces, and more innovation in risk controls and liquidity design.
For Solana, a strong perp DEX would be strategically important because it could keep more trading activity inside the chain. That matters for ecosystem growth, developer interest, and the overall strength of Solana’s DeFi stack.
What Happens Next
At this stage, the project appears to be in active development, but the launch timeline is still unclear. Reports suggest that some core elements are already being built, while other parts such as liquidation systems and final testing are still underway.
Even so, the signal is clear: Solana does not want to sit out the perpetuals race. With Toly now publicly pushing the idea, Hyperliquid may soon face a more serious Solana-backed challenge than before.
