The surge is pushed by stablecoins, DEX adoption, and efforts to simplify cross-chain asset transfers.
Cross-chain infrastructure is gaining traction as decentralized exchanges (DEXs), stablecoins, and new integrations drive elevated utilization.
In Might, whole bridge quantity reached $17.3 billion, an almost 30% enhance from April, based on knowledge from Artemis Terminal, a blockchain analytics platform. This additionally marked the very best month-to-month whole since January. Nearly all of Might’s quantity was facilitated by 4 protocols: Circle’s Cross-Chain Switch Protocol (CCTP), Stargate Finance, Arbitrum’s native bridge and Throughout.
The rise in quantity, which underscores person demand for simpler asset motion between blockchains, comes as DEXs race to enhance cross-chain performance by way of bridge protocol integrations.
PancakeSwap Integrates Throughout
Earlier at present, PancakeSwap – BNB Chain’s largest DEX with $2 billion in whole worth locked (TVL) – introduced a partnership with Throughout Protocol to allow one-click cross-chain swaps.
The brand new characteristic removes the necessity for exterior apps or technical experience, based on a press launch considered by The Defiant. The instrument permits customers to swap tokens between BNB Chain, Arbitrum, and Base instantly from the PancakeSwap interface, all in a single transaction.
“We’re seeing applications realize that bridging is critical to their growth path,” Hart Lambur, the co-founder of Throughout, advised The Defiant in an interview. “PancakeSwap would not simply wish to service customers on Binance Sensible Chain (BSC)—they wish to let customers on any chain come and use PancakeSwap with no friction and no must go ‘bridge’. “
He defined that Throughout permits this by providing a “2-second” bridge experience that is so seamless, users don’t even realize they just bridged. “We think this is the future for how Ethereum and its L2s will feel united,” Lambur added.
“There’s a clear shift underway – DEXs are increasingly integrating cross-chain protocols,” echoed Prabal Banerjee, founder of Avail. “It’s no longer just a feature upgrade; it’s a necessity as liquidity is fragmented across chains and users are frustrated by convoluted flows and poor user experience (UX).”
‘Stablecoin Summer’
While much of the demand still comes from DeFi users chasing yield, Lambur noted that a new trend is emerging: stablecoin activity. The stablecoin market has experienced a significant surge over the past 18 months, driven by growing institutional interest, and currently boasts a market capitalization of $251 billion, according to DeFiLlama.
“It is very clear that this is ‘stablecoin summer’ and I expect the second half of 2025 to be something of a stablecoin bonanza,” he mentioned. “Institutions, [traditional finance], and folks like Stripe are really embracing stablecoins as a better set of rails to move money. We only expect this trend to continue.”
