Key Points:
- Axiom returned 43% of collected fees to traders, incentivizing participation through a tiered reward system.
- The platform offers an all-in-one interface for token swaps, perpetual futures trading, and yield generation.
- Axiom’s founders prioritized product-driven growth over influencer marketing, focusing on user experience.
Axiom is a decentralized exchange (DEX) co-founded by two 22-year-old UC San Diego grads, Henry Zhang (Mist) and Preston Ellis (Cal), who previously worked at TikTok and DoorDash before launching Axiom as part of Y Combinator’s Winter 2025 batch.
Axiom’s On-Chain Data
In just about five months of its launch, Axiom became the fastest YC-backed startup to hit $100 million in revenue and $10 billion in trading volume, according to a Dune analytics dashboard and Token Terminal data. Breaking the previous Y Combinator record held by Cursor, another, which took 12 months to reach the same milestone. The memecoin launchpad Pump.fun reached the same milestone in eight months back in 2024.
Axiom’s Q2 2025 results so far are extremely optimistic, with trading volume up 383.4% to $8.2B, revenue soaring 310.3% to $82.3M, and daily active users rising over 200% across the board since its early launch this year, according to Token Terminal.
What Made Axiom Different?
Tweet by Axiom’s CEO
1.Users get to earn more:
Axiom gives back 43% of the fees it collects to its users through a tiered reward system. Unlike traditional exchanges that just collect trading fees, Axiom’s model rewards traders for their activity, encouraging participation. Just like Robinhood’s exquisite zero-fee trading feature introduced 2018, Axiom’s fee-sharing structure will push others to adapt.
Axiom’s system lets users progress through levels starting at “Wood” with lower rewards and moving up to “Champion” with higher ones.
Earlier this month, Axiom returned up to 43% of its fees to users as rewards, according to Dune dashboard creator Adam_Tehc.
2. All in one Solution:
Axiom’s interface offers Solana token swapping, Hyperliquid futures trading, and yield options through MarginFi, Axiom meets modern traders’ expectations for an all-in-one solution.
3. Product first, Influencers later
Axiom’s founders are not heavily active on social media and stayed away from heavy influencer marketing, emphasizing product-led growth over the hype-driven strategies often seen in earlier crypto cycles.
Conclusion
Axiom’s impressive growth trajectory, backed by a strong product and innovative reward structure, shows how user-first strategies can fuel rapid success in the competitive crypto exchange space.
