GMX, a decentralized perpetuals trading protocol, has rolled out a series of platform upgrades aimed at bringing the user experience closer to that of centralized exchanges. The July updates introduced native smart wallet support alongside new Express and One-Click trading features, significantly reducing the operational friction typically associated with decentralized trading platforms. The upgrades reflect a broader competitive push among decentralized exchanges to close the long-standing UX gap with centralized venues, where account abstraction and streamlined execution have been key areas of investment across the sector.

Key Features Delivered in July

Beyond the headline additions of smart wallet integration and one-click trading, the July updates included several other improvements. Swap routing visuals received a comprehensive overhaul, providing traders with greater transparency into how orders are routed across liquidity pools.

Additionally, users can now install the GMX application directly onto their devices. The platform adopted a progressive web app (PWA) model, enabling traders to access GMX from their home screens without relying on a traditional web browser. The PWA approach allows GMX to distribute its application without going through mobile app store approval processes while still delivering a native-like installation experience.

Platform Architecture and Network Operations

GMX operates on Arbitrum and Avalanche, two layer-1 and layer-2 networks that have established significant positions within the decentralized finance ecosystem. Arbitrum is a leading Ethereum layer-2 scaling solution, while Avalanche is a layer-1 blockchain known for its high throughput and low-latency transaction finality.

The platform completed its full transition from the legacy V1 trading system and GLP liquidity model to the V2 architecture by July 2025. Under V2, GM pools and GLV vaults serve as the primary liquidity products. Rather than relying on a single unified pool that absorbs all market risk, the V2 design segments liquidity into isolated markets, allowing liquidity providers more granular control over their risk exposure on a per-market basis. The shift aligns with a wider DeFi design trend toward risk compartmentalization, as single-pool models used by earlier generations of perpetuals protocols exposed liquidity providers to correlated losses across all markets during periods of extreme volatility.

Expanded Asset Coverage

GMX has broadened its offerings beyond cryptocurrency markets. The protocol now supports perpetuals contracts for gold and silver, with both markets operational on a 24/7 basis. The addition places GMX among a growing set of DeFi protocols offering on-chain exposure to traditional commodities, an area that has seen increased activity as tokenized real-world asset markets have expanded.

Token Buyback Program

On the token economics side, the GMX DAO launched a fee-based buyback program in March 2026. According to the protocol's reported figures, the DAO has repurchased over 384,000 GMX tokens for approximately $2.4 million, representing an average acquisition price of roughly $6.25 per token. Fee-driven buyback mechanisms have become a widely adopted value accrual model across DeFi protocols, using protocol revenue to reduce circulating supply of native tokens.