- Hidden exchanges called “dark AMMs” are growing rapidly on Solana.
- These platforms handled about $6 billion of trading last week – nearly 30% of Solana’s trade volume.
- The creators of major dark AMMs, such as HumidiFi, remain mostly anonymous.
- Dark AMMs use active liquidity management, often leading to better trade prices than traditional decentralized exchanges.
- The trend toward dark AMMs raises questions about transparency in Solana’s trading ecosystem.
A growing number of anonymous trading platforms called “dark automated market makers” (dark AMMs) are handling a significant share of trading on the Solana blockchain. Last week, one example, HumidiFi, processed nearly $3 billion in trades, which made up about 15% of Solana’s total trading activity.
Together, dark AMMs accounted for more than $6 billion of trades, or roughly 30% of total trading on Solana, based on figures from Blockworks Research. The identities of those behind these platforms, including HumidiFi, are often unknown. Rivals and social media users alike have reported being unaware of who is operating them.
“Better execution is winning out over transparency,” said Amir Hajian of crypto market maker Keyrock, explaining that traders are choosing platforms that offer efficient trades—even if they know little about who runs them. Dark AMMs differ from typical decentralized exchanges because they actively adjust their liquidity. This helps them secure better prices and protect themselves from trading bots that seek profit from price differences.
Unlike traditional decentralized exchanges, dark AMMs do not offer public websites or allow outside users to add their own assets and earn fees. Instead, their creators provide all liquidity and only accept trades routed through aggregator platforms like Jupiter. Aggregators connect users to the best price available from multiple exchanges.
Some projects, like Tessera V, have been confirmed by market makers such as Wintermute to be dark AMMs. In May, Ellipsis Labs claimed it developed SolFi, ending months of uncertainty around its ownership.
Experts say that the rise of dark AMMs marks a change from blockchains’ original promise of financial transparency. Brady Benedict of crypto data platform Meridian commented that active liquidity might soon overtake passive trading entirely.
Dark AMMs currently dominate stablecoin trading on Solana, with trends indicating their continued growth. As these platforms provide better pricing for users, more trades are likely to be routed through them, though questions about oversight and openness remain unresolved.
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