Deviations from tradition: stylized facts in the era of DeFi

Decentralized Exchanges (DEXs) are now a significant component of the financial world where billions of dollars are traded daily. Differently from traditional markets, which are typically based on Limit Order Books, DEXs typically work as Automated Market Makers, and, since the implementation of Uniswap v3, feature concentrated liquidity. By investigating the twenty-four most active pools in Uniswap v3 during 2023 and 2024, we empirically study how this structural change in the organization of the markets modifies the well-studied stylized facts of prices, liquidity, and order flow observed in traditional markets. We find a series of new statistical regularities in the distributions and cross-autocorrelation functions of these variables that we are able to associate either with the market structure (e.g. the execution of orders in blocks) or with the intense activity of Maximal Extractable Value searchers, such as Just-in-Time liquidity providers and sandwich attackers.

Authors

Institutions

Publication Details

Journal
Quantitative Finance
Published
2026-07-27
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1080/14697688.2026.2678231
Primary Topic
Complex Systems and Time Series Analysis
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

Funders

Controls
|||
ALL TIME
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
article

Deviations from tradition: stylized facts in the era of DeFi

Fabrizio Lillo, Sebastian Jaimungal, Daniele Maria Di Nosse, Federico Gatta
Quantitative Finance
Complex Systems and Time Series Analysis
article

Deviations from tradition: stylized facts in the era of DeFi

Fabrizio Lillo, Sebastian Jaimungal, Daniele Maria Di Nosse, Federico Gatta
article en

Abstract

Decentralized Exchanges (DEXs) are now a significant component of the financial world where billions of dollars are traded daily. Differently from traditional markets, which are typically based on Limit Order Books, DEXs typically work as Automated Market Makers, and, since the implementation of Uniswap v3, feature concentrated liquidity. By investigating the twenty-four most active pools in Uniswap v3 during 2023 and 2024, we empirically study how this structural change in the organization of the markets modifies the well-studied stylized facts of prices, liquidity, and order flow observed in traditional markets. We find a series of new statistical regularities in the distributions and cross-autocorrelation functions of these variables that we are able to associate either with the market structure (e.g. the execution of orders in blocks) or with the intense activity of Maximal Extractable Value searchers, such as Just-in-Time liquidity providers and sandwich attackers.

Quantitative Finance
Scuola Normale Superiore (IT), University of Toronto (CA), University of Oxford (GB), University of Bologna (IT)
Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
Openalex Percentile: Top 99%
Complex Systems and Time Series Analysis
AI Navigator

Ask Laika to Summarize, Analyze, and Connect papers live on the map.

Summarize Papers & Methodologies

Extract key findings, datasets, and comparative methods across publications.

Benchmark Rankings & Visual Analytics

Rank top research institutions, authors, funders, topics, and journals by Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) and paper volume with instant charts.

Connect Distant Disciplines

Bridge topological clusters on the map to find hidden collaborative intersections.