Kuyen Labs presents an analysis of the VIP tier of the dYdX Affiliate Program covering August 2025. This report examines the VIP tier performance within the larger dYdX affiliate program and the dYdX ecosystem, highlighting key achievements, challenges, and strategic next steps.
Affiliate Program KPIs (Cumulative as of August 31, 2025)
The following metrics reflect the total results since the program’s start:
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Total Affiliates: 530 | VIP Affiliates: 125
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Total Referred Trading Volume: $5.24B
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Referred Trading Volume by VIP Affiliates: $3.56B (67%)
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Total Referred Users: 4,245 | Referred Users by VIP Affiliates: 1,164 (27%)
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Total Referred Fees: $1.34M | VIP Referred Fees: $883K (66%)
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Affiliate Commissions Earned: $122K | VIP Affiliates Commissions Earned: $80K (65%)
Overview: Where Does the Affiliate Program Stand?
Over the approximately ten months of the dYdX Affiliate Program’s operation, it has moved through periods of high activity and quieter moments impacted by broader market conditions. The first 2 to 3 months of the program saw very high activity, with a large number of new users joining and referred volume making up a significant portion of dYdX’s total.
Following the initial surge, performance gradually stabilized into a steady rhythm. The profile of contributions has also shifted: some affiliates that started out very strong have slowed their pace, while others that were initially less visible are now delivering consistent activity. Throughout this transition, the VIP affiliates have remained a dependable driver of both user acquisition and trading volume. What this has created is a solid foundation of creators who continue to add sustainable value to the protocol, ensuring that growth is not just occasional spikes but an ongoing stream of engaged users.
Performance Analysis
1. Affiliate-Generated Trading Volume (Monthly Data: Dec 2024 - August 2025)
After March, total trading volume on dYdX went down and this also affected affiliate referrals, but July showed a recovery with $7.9B in total trading and $355M referred by affiliates, and in August the program kept improving as VIP affiliates raised their share of referred volume to 24% (up from 13% in July), while the continuation of the Booster Program through Sprints 4 and 5 helped keep non-VIP affiliates active and brought VIPs back, building a more stable and consistent base of contributors.
| Month | Total Trading Volume | Affiliates Referred Trading Volume | Affiliates Share | VIP Referred Trading Volume | VIPs Share (of Affiliates) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| December | $16.9B | $1.8B | 11% | $1.7B | 93% |
| January | $10.4B | $809M | 8% | $680M | 84% |
| February | $7.8B | $74M | 1% | $3.5M | 5% |
| March | $7.8B | $242M | 3% | $107M | 44% |
| April | $5.8B | $217M | 3.7% | $141M | 65% |
| May | $5.4B | $207M | 3.7% | $32M | 15% |
| June | $4.7B | $172M | 3.6% | $2.8M | 1.6% |
| July | $7.9B | $355M | 4.4% | $47M | 13% |
| August | $8.4B | $422M | 5.2% | $104M | 24.6% |
2. New Trader Acquisition (Monthly Data: Dec 2024 - August 2025)
The number of new users referred by affiliates remained fairly stable, making up around 5-6% of all new traders on dYdX for several months. A significant change occurred in June, when the affiliate share of new traders more than doubled to 12%. This was followed by a more dramatic shift in July, when the affiliate share surged to 64%. The role of VIP affiliates in user acquisition has also changed; they were responsible for 64% of referred users in December, but that share dropped to 31% by May, indicating that other affiliates are playing a bigger role in bringing new traders to the platform.
| Month | New Traders on dYdX | New Referred Users | Affiliates Share | New VIP Referred Users | VIP Share (of Affiliates) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| December | 2800 | 231 | 8% | 148 | 64% |
| January | 2000 | 119 | 6% | 55 | 46% |
| February | 1200 | 60 | 5% | 21 | 35% |
| March | 1180 | 56 | 5% | 19 | 34% |
| April | 1470 | 96 | 6.5% | 40 | 42% |
| May | 1527 | 75 | 5% | 23 | 31% |
| June | 2316 | 277 | 12% | 23 | 8.3% |
| July | 2850 | 1,849 | 64% | 37 | 2% |
| August | 3549 | 937 | 28% | 39 | 4.1% |
August VIP Review
Kuyen Labs has been ramping up its growth strategy, taking the affiliate program into new territory. Over the past two months alone, outreach efforts have connected with 500+ potential affiliates, expanding well beyond the traditional crypto creator space to include traders with niche communities and educational voices with highly engaged audiences.
A key friction in this process has been the response dynamics: a large proportion of prospects do not reply, another significant share asks for upfront payments (not aligning with a 100% performance-based referral model), and only a smaller fraction eventually makes it to whitelist approval. This has been the main challenge when aiming to expand the VIP affiliate user base.
Even with these hurdles, the outreach has created pathways to affiliates with unique strengths and long-term potential. As a direct result, Kuyen Labs successfully whitelisted 9 new VIP affiliates in the past month, with several more in active conversations and close to joining. Beyond individual outreach, the team has also held calls to explore potential partnerships with industry agents, leveraging connections that could significantly expand dYdX’s reach and visibility.
This combination of high-volume outreach, quality partnerships, and strategic industry engagement is shaping Kuyen Labs’ vision: building a stronger, more diverse program powered by affiliates who deliver real, long-term value.
Affiliate Booster Program
In August, dYdX raised the stakes with two new sprints of the Affiliate Booster Program, keeping affiliates engaged through competition, growth, and retention.
Sprint 4
The Affiliate Program sprint started with strong momentum, reaching a total of $20.9K in rewards. $11.9K went to leaderboard prizes while $9K was set aside as a bonus pool for early volume hitters. To qualify, affiliates needed to bring at least one new user and generate more than $10K in referred volume, driving fast-paced growth from the very first days.
Sprint 5
Building on that momentum, the next 14-day sprint introduced a new retention element. $12K in rewards were distributed, with $9K for the top 10 affiliates ranked by referred volume and a $3K Retention Bonus Pool that awarded $50 per trader who stayed active for 7 days after the sprint. To enter, affiliates had to refer to at least 3 qualified traders ($500+ volume and 3+ trades), creating an exciting challenge that pushed both acquisition and long-term engagement.
With fresh formats and stronger incentives, August established the Booster Program as a key driver of both new growth and sustained affiliate engagement.
Real-time rankings were showcased on Kuyen Labs leaderboard and shared with the community, ensuring affiliates could track their performance and push for top positions.
Next Steps
The Affiliate Program has shown steady recovery in August, with VIP affiliates regaining share of referred volume and new traders. To build on this momentum and ensure consistent long-term growth, we will focus on the following actions:
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Strengthen VIP affiliate base
Continue onboarding new high-potential VIP affiliates (9 already added last month) and fast-track others currently in conversations. At the same time, review inactive VIPs, re-engage them with direct support, and apply stricter criteria to maintain an active roster. -
Expand outreach and partnerships
Keep scaling outreach to traders, educators, and niche communities beyond the traditional crypto influencer space. Build partnerships with industry agents to amplify reach and secure affiliates with long-term impact. -
Boost content and conversion tools
Provide affiliates with improved content packages:-
Comparison materials (dYdX vs CEXes / other perp DEXes).
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Educational trading content.
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Optimize incentives and retention
Refine the Booster Program by testing new sprint formats that combine growth and retention mechanics. Ensure rewards not only drive new signups but also long-term trading activity. -
Audit and risk monitoring
Keep reinforcing program integrity with closer monitoring of affiliate activity. Detect and prevent low-quality or abusive practices while keeping the program transparent and fair.
Conclusion
August marked a clear improvement for VIP affiliates, as affiliate-referred trading volume grew 121% from July. VIPs also brought in 39 new traders, keeping a steady role in acquisition even as non-VIPs delivered higher numbers overall.
This rebound shows that re-engagement efforts and the Booster Program are having a positive impact, helping to stabilize VIP performance after several months of lower activity. Moving forward, we will continue to prioritize onboarding new high-potential VIPs and reactivating inactive ones to ensure this tier remains a consistent driver of sustainable growth for dYdX.