Raydium is a decentralised finance (DeFi) protocol built on the Solana blockchain. It functions as an automated market maker (AMM) and a liquidity provider for the Serum decentralised exchange (DEX). Raydium allows for fast and inexpensive transactions, enabling users to trade, stake, and provide liquidity efficiently. It integrates with Serum's central limit order book to enhance trading capabilities and liquidity provision.
Raydium operates by leveraging Solana's high throughput and low latency to facilitate near-instantaneous token swaps and transactions via its AMM. It uniquely integrates with Serum's central limit order book, offering liquidity providers the ability to earn yield while benefiting from the comprehensive order book and tighter spreads available on Serum. Users can create permissionless liquidity pools and participate in yield farming to earn additional returns. Raydium also supports staking of its native token, RAY, for governance participation and further protocol rewards.
Raydium is utilised in several key areas within the DeFi sector:
Raydium was launched in February 2021 by a team including AlphaRay, XRay, and GammaRay, with backgrounds in commodity trading and market making. The project's development began in 2020, with a focus on leveraging Serum's existing infrastructure to create a more comprehensive and efficient DeFi service. Key milestones for Raydium include its integration with Serum's order book and the development of a hybrid AMM model. The protocol swiftly adapted to changes in the crypto ecosystem, such as moving to OpenBook following the FTX collapse, demonstrating its ability to maintain robust operations in a dynamic market environment. Raydium continues to attract significant trading volumes, capturing a large portion of Solana's DEX market share.