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Derivatives · Review

Inactive

Pingu Exchange Review 2026: Perp DEX That Announced Its Closure

Pingu Exchange was a community-driven perpetual futures DEX on Arbitrum, with a PINGU token that shared protocol revenue with stakers. Reports say it announced its closure on July 31, so treat it as a defunct or winding-down project.

By the DappsAtlas editorial team · Updated

Our verdict on Pingu Exchange

2.5/10

Pingu Exchange was a small, community-driven perpetual DEX on Arbitrum whose PINGU token offered a 35% revenue share to stakers. It is mainly of interest as a record of a failed or ended project, not as a place to trade. Reports say it announced closure on July 31, no audits are listed, TVL is tiny, and fees are not published. Anyone with funds or tokens there should check official channels for wind-down instructions.

Score breakdown

How Pingu Exchange scores

Security
2.5/10
Ease of use
n/a
Fees
n/a
Features
3.5/10

Scores run from 0 to 10 and are based only on facts we could verify. Where information was missing we mark the score n/a rather than guess.

What is Pingu Exchange?

Pingu Exchange was a decentralized perpetual protocol that launched on Arbitrum and was listed from February 2024. It described itself as community driven. Its token, PINGU, was designed to share protocol revenue with stakers.

In 2025 the project said PINGU was live on the Monad testnet, where holders could stake to earn 35% of protocol revenue. It also ran a points campaign that rewarded trading activity.

Public reporting now show that Pingu Exchange announced its closure on July 31. Tracked TVL is only about $22,651 and the token's market capitalisation is negligible. Anyone researching the project should treat it as inactive or winding down.

How Pingu Exchange works

A perpetual futures contract lets a trader bet on an asset's price going up or down with leverage, and it has no expiry date. On a decentralized perpetual exchange, the trader posts collateral from a wallet, and smart contracts handle positions, pricing and liquidations instead of a company holding funds.

Pingu described itself as a community-driven protocol of this kind on Arbitrum. Its exact pricing model, liquidity design and leverage limits are not published in the material reviewed.

PINGU was the protocol token. A post from the project's account said holders could stake it to receive 35% of protocol revenue, which ties the token's value to trading activity. If trading stops, that revenue disappears.

5 features

Key features

01

Decentralized perpetuals

The protocol was described as a decentralized perpetual protocol, letting users trade perpetual contracts from their own wallets.

02

Community-driven model

The project positioned itself as community driven, though how governance worked is not published in the material reviewed.

03

PINGU revenue-share staking

PINGU holders could stake tokens through the project's staking page to earn 35% of protocol revenue, according to a post from the project's account.

04

Arbitrum and Monad presence

The protocol ran on Arbitrum, and PINGU was announced as live on the Monad testnet in 2025.

05

Points campaign

A points campaign encouraged users to trade to grow their share of rewards, with details kept in the project's documentation.

Pros and cons

What we like

  • Clear purpose: a non-custodial perpetual futures exchange
  • Token holders were promised 35% of protocol revenue through staking
  • Ran on Arbitrum, a widely used low-fee Ethereum layer 2
  • Public documentation and a points programme existed for users
  • Expanded to the Monad testnet, showing development activity in 2025

Watch out for

  • The project announced its closure on July 31, so the platform may no longer be usable
  • No security audits are listed for the protocol
  • Very small TVL (about $22,651), which means thin liquidity for perpetual trading
  • The PINGU token has a near-zero market capitalisation and negligible trading volume
  • The team, fee schedule and risk parameters are not published in the material reviewed

Pingu Exchange fees

Pingu Exchange's trading fees, funding rates and other charges are not published in the material reviewed. Users would normally have found them in the project's documentation or on the trading interface.

The one fee-related detail available is that 35% of protocol revenue was directed to PINGU stakers. Network gas costs on Arbitrum would have applied on top of any protocol fees.

Is Pingu Exchange safe?

No audits are listed for Pingu Exchange in the material reviewed. The team's identity, any insurance fund and the oracle design are also not published here. Perpetual DEXs carry smart-contract, oracle and liquidation risks, and low liquidity makes price manipulation and slippage more likely.

The main risk now is the reported closure. Users should rely only on official announcements for withdrawal steps and beware of scam links during wind-downs. Leveraged trading can lose all collateral and may be restricted in some jurisdictions, so check your local rules.

5 steps

How to get started with Pingu Exchange

  1. 1

    Check the project's official social account first to confirm whether the platform is still operating after the reported July 31 closure announcement.

  2. 2

    If it is winding down, follow any official instructions for closing positions and withdrawing collateral.

  3. 3

    Review the documentation for the shutdown process, risks and any remaining staking or reward terms.

  4. 4

    Only interact with contracts and links published by the project's verified channels, as shutdown periods attract impersonators.

  5. 5

    Confirm that leveraged derivatives trading is legal where you live before using any perpetual protocol.

Who Pingu Exchange is for

This page suits people who held PINGU, used the exchange, or are researching small perpetual DEXs on Arbitrum and Monad. It is not a recommendation to open new leveraged positions, given the closure announcement and thin liquidity.

Pingu Exchange FAQs

Is Pingu Exchange shut down?

Reports indicate that Pingu Exchange announced its closure on July 31. The year is not given in the snippet, and the project's earlier social posts and documentation date from 2025. Anyone holding positions or tokens should check the project's official channels for wind-down instructions.

What was Pingu Exchange?

It was a decentralized perpetual protocol, meaning traders could take leveraged long or short positions on assets without a centralized exchange holding their funds. It launched on Arbitrum and later extended to the Monad testnet.

What does the PINGU token do?

PINGU was the protocol's token. According to a post from the project's account, holders could stake it to earn 35% of the protocol's revenue. With the closure announcement, that revenue stream is unlikely to continue.

Which blockchains did Pingu Exchange support?

The project's listed chains are Arbitrum and Monad. A project post said PINGU went live on the Monad testnet, so Monad activity may have been test-stage only.

Was Pingu Exchange audited?

No audits are listed for the protocol in the information reviewed. Combined with very low TVL and a closure announcement, the risk profile is high.

Is it safe to trade on Pingu Exchange now?

Leveraged derivatives trading carries a high risk of loss and may be restricted where you live. Check local rules and the project's current status before interacting with any related contracts.

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How we checked

Sources

  1. 1.defillama.com/protocol/pingu-exchange

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