Uniswap Goes Live on OKX’s X Layer as Preferred DEX - A Major DeFi Power Move

Uniswap just landed on OKX's Layer-2 blockchain, X Layer, securing the prime spot as its go-to decentralized exchange. This isn't just another integration—it's a strategic play that reshapes the entire DeFi landscape.

Why This Move Cuts Through the Noise

Forget the usual partnership fluff. This is about dominance. By becoming the preferred DEX on X Layer, Uniswap bypasses the crowded, expensive Ethereum mainnet and plants its flag directly in OKX's growing ecosystem. It's a direct line to millions of users and liquidity, no intermediaries required.

The X Layer Edge: Speed, Cost, Scale

X Layer isn't just another chain. Built with zero-knowledge tech, it promises the holy trinity: faster transactions, lower fees, and Ethereum-level security. Uniswap's deployment here means traders can swap assets without the gas-guzzling delays that plague mainnet—a user experience upgrade that could pull volume from centralized competitors.

A Calculated Gambit in the Layer-2 Wars

The Layer-2 arena is a battlefield, and Uniswap just claimed a key territory. Aligning with a major exchange's proprietary chain is a power move. It locks in liquidity, captures early adopters, and positions Uniswap at the center of OKX's entire DeFi strategy. Other DEXs are now playing catch-up.

The Bigger Picture: DeFi's Institutional Moment

This isn't just about retail degens. The integration signals a maturation—a bridge between a leading DEX protocol and a top-tier exchange's infrastructure. It's the kind of move that makes traditional finance desks take notice, even as they privately scoff at 'meme coin volatility.'

One protocol, two chains, and a whole lot of market share up for grabs. The race for DeFi's future isn't just on Ethereum anymore—it's on every Layer-2 that can deliver. And with this launch, Uniswap just secured a massive head start.

Uniswap adopts a significant move in the crypto industry 

X Layer, a Layer 2 network for ethereum established by OKX, launched on April 15, 2024. It coordinates with the Ethereum Virtual Machine to back core DeFi operations. Apart from this role, reports noted that the network links to OKX’s wallet and exchange to streamline users’ process of transferring their assets into the layer-2 network.

Following this discovery, sources acknowledged that Uniswap had reinforced its reputation as the largest and most widely preferred decentralized exchange. As of today, the protocol holds about $4.4 billion in total value locked, according to reports from DefiLlama.

Hayden Adams, the founder of Uniswap Labs, weighed in on the integration, predicting it will boost Uniswap’s operational performance and increase liquidity to the protocol. 

“This collaboration is a ‘core pillar of phase two’ in the company’s three-phase rollout plan, which aims to connect major DeFi protocols and strengthen Core infrastructure,” Star Xu, the founder and CEO of OKX, said.

Notably, the DEX protocol’s move demonstrated a growing trend whereby centralized exchanges are increasingly integrating on-chain activity into their user profiles.

Several crypto exchanges, including Uniswap’s lead

As the trend intensified, reports stated that Coinbase, a leading cryptocurrency exchange, launched a LAYER 2 blockchain in February 2023. Its intended purpose was to provide developers with a budget-friendly, secure environment for developing decentralized applications. 

By early 2024, officials at the crypto exchange noticed that Base was gaining fast traction among decentralized exchange traders and rapidly outpacing competitors such as Ethereum and Arbitrum. This statement was confirmed by a report from Token Terminal, a full-stack on-chain data platform that standardizes financial and alternative data for blockchains and decentralized applications (dApps).

By January 2024, Base accounted for around 80% of Uniswap’s monthly traders who actively participated in the protocol. 

Impressed with this contribution, crypto exchange Gate.io decided to take the same lead. The exchange made the introduction of Gate Layer, a high-performance Layer 2 blockchain network built on the OP Stack and secured by GateChain (its Layer 1), public in September 2025.

Consequently, the exchange referred to the Gate Layer as the CORE pillar of its DeFi ecosystem. It also introduced on-chain trading and liquidity products to its system as part of its broad Web3 strategy.

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