Primitive Ventures: Why are we bullish on on-chain perpetual US stocks?

Author: YettaS , Investment Partner, Primitive Ventures

As gold and silver continue to hit new highs, Trade.xyz 's daily trading volume approaches $2 billion, and Binance launches TSLA perpetual contracts with almost no hesitation, the trend can no longer be ignored: traditional financial assets are becoming a new gateway for the crypto market to absorb global liquidity .

Just a year ago, most CEX operators probably couldn't accept the fact that an onchain trading platform could use TradFi assets as a wedge to begin directly eroding and reshaping the core territory of centralized exchanges .

We all know that crypto funds naturally favor volatility; from a product structure perspective, equity perp happens to be at the intersection of several key upgrades, which is the fundamental reason why it has stood out in this cycle:

• As CBOE/CME gradually accepts crypto in-kind margin this year, the liquidity and availability of crypto assets as margin will be significantly improved.

• Once DTCC establishes a direct on-chain connection, the settlement layer will begin to penetrate onto the chain, allowing equity assets to obtain native on-chain settlement channels from the source.

• The really interesting part is this: tokenized stocks as collateral → perpetual contracts accepted by exchanges → institutions begin to systematically do basis farming.

Onshore issuance, offshore distribution

The US exports finance not by exporting financial institutions themselves, but by exporting "access rights." The petrodollar system distributed dollars globally, spilling over inflationary pressures; stablecoins replicate this logic, turning the world into new dollar holders through the wholesale distribution of US Treasury bonds, without the need for banks or brokers. On-chain stocks are the next step in this logic. From unbanked to unbrokered, dollar assets will once again be dumped globally.

CEXs recognized the opportunities and potential threats early on and therefore chose to be among the first to expand. Ondo and xStocks focused on the issuance side—connecting with brokers, custodying real stocks, and minting 1:1 tokenized stocks on multiple chains—but it turned out that issuance itself does not automatically create a market.

The first wave of genuine demand came from traders unable to access the US brokerage system, and from crypto natives seeking exposure to US stocks without relying on TradeFi infrastructure. Issuers completed the heaviest compliance and custody work, but funds flowed to those who truly controlled trading attention and distribution capabilities. Offshore platforms embedded their products directly into their trading interfaces, naturally leading to a surge in trading volume. Ultimately, we see the vast majority of tokenized stock trading volume concentrated on BNB Chain, accounting for over 80%.

If offshore spot trading unlocks retail demand, on-chain equity perp further attracts traffic from professional traders. These users are global trading participants who want to trade or hedge US stocks without being restricted by brokerage access, trading hours, or jurisdiction.

Taking HIP-3 as an example, it provides professional traders with a trading interface that allows them to systematically perform basis trading, capture cross-market misalignments, and simultaneously cover stocks, crypto assets, and indices. Coupled with potential airdrop incentives, trading volume continues to reach new highs.

The golden window for on-chain stock perpetuality

Once a spot anchor exists, perpetual contracts will almost always become the most efficient trading tool, and the reason is as straightforward as ever:

• 24/7 trading, not restricted by market hours

• With cross-margining across all assets, capital efficiency is extremely high.

• High leverage allows the true risk appetite to be released.

• Can be incorporated into DeFi strategies

• Provides a clear margin path for RWA/tokenized assets

The entire technology stack is rapidly taking shape:

Infrastructure

• HIP-3 / HyperCore: A high-performance order book engine that supports any perp market.

• Orderly: A unified, end-to-end order book that allows anyone to start perp without coding.

• Chainlink: Stock Price Oracle (Core Data Layer)

Platforms (where transactions take place)

• Trade.xyz : Based on HIP-3, currently the largest equity perpetual DEX.

• Ostium: FX / Commodities / Stocks, with a CFD-like structure

• Ventuals: Pre-IPO Market (HIP-3)

• Felix / Vest / Aster / Architect: Each has its own focus in terms of settlement, coverage, and distribution.

Terminals (Current upstream traffic entry points)

• Based on: A multi-asset interface aggregating Hyperliquid, HIP-3, and prediction markets.

• Phantom/Metamask-like front-ends: converting wallet traffic into transaction behavior.

Looking ahead, the focus is shifting from "tokenization" to "money speed," where true on-chain GDP will be generated. Ultimately, the winners will not just be the players who can mint on-chain packaged assets, but the exchanges that can convert any asset into usable margin at scale and provide the deepest liquidity and the cleanest matching/risk control engines.

Imagine the future as a globally unified "margin network": Bitcoin, US stocks, gold, and US bonds will no longer be locked in their respective systems, but will be used as collateral at any time, like building blocks; perpetual contracts will become the most universal risk expression tool; stablecoins will play the role of cash; and various trading and arbitrage strategies will operate automatically and combine continuously on-chain 24/7. Assets will no longer be "held," but will be continuously used.

Racing against time

The window has opened, but time is running out for on-chain equity perp. The biggest threat isn't demand, but the official approval of onshore products. History has repeatedly shown that once regulators give their approval, distribution will quickly flow back into the existing brokerage system; 0DTE options are the most direct example: after approval, they were rapidly absorbed and dominated by Robinhood.

More importantly, the countdown has begun. The SEC and CFTC are systematically studying perpetual derivatives and their market structure and risks, which typically means that regulatory boundaries are being proactively defined. Meanwhile,

• Bitnomial became the first CFTC-compliant perp

• Coinbase has also launched 5-year futures contracts with funding mechanisms, which are almost identical to PERP in terms of trading behavior.

The reason offshore and on-chain players can still maintain their lead is simply because their products haven't been standardized yet. Once the rules are established, this advantage will quickly disappear. Those who truly have a chance are not those waiting for certainty, but those who quickly lock in users and liquidity while the window of opportunity remains, and who shape the rules while simultaneously working with regulators. Time is not a background variable, but the core constraint determining victory or defeat, and the countdown has already begun.

Just as Tether used crypto's distribution capabilities to quietly push the US dollar globally, today's on-chain economy is essentially doing the same thing—leveraging the liquidity and trading tools of the crypto market to deliver US stocks and assets to a wider range of participants with higher frequency, higher leverage, and higher liquidity. On-chain isn't fighting against off-chain; it's rewriting the existing system's operation with faster speed and greater capital efficiency. The real watershed lies in the ability to capture this mechanism in time and complete the understanding and deployment of this new continent on-chain.