From Centralized Exchanges to On-Chain Perps — and Back Again

[bonk]

The turmoil also split the exchange landscape. BitMEX pointed to a growing divide between “fair matcher” exchanges and predatory B-Book platforms that trade against users and void profitable positions. As trust eroded, trading volume migrated rapidly to on-chain perpetual DEXs like Hyperliquid.

However, decentralization brought its own risks. The September launch of Plasma (XPL) exposed vulnerabilities, allowing attackers to manipulate illiquid tokens and trigger forced liquidations using transparent on-chain data. BitMEX argued the episode proved that transparency alone doesn’t prevent manipulation — and that battle-tested exchanges may still offer the strongest user protections going forward.

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b-book exchanges nuking profitable users is shady but also very on brand