A strong and adaptable method for improving and expanding the ability of decentralised exchanges (DEXs) is provided by UniV4 Hooks. Hooks, that were patterned after the innovative architecture of Uniswap v4, allow developers add custom logic at strategic points in a pool's lifecycle, such as before or after swaps, liquidity provision, or position changes.
In this article we are talking about:
UniV4 Hooks are smart contract callbacks that allow developers to inject custom logic at specific stages of a pool’s operations in Uniswap v4 (or similar DEXs). Hooks allow for dynamic adjustments, such as changing fees, imposing restrictions, or initiating external contracts, which makes DEXs more adaptable, effective, and programmable than traditional AMMs with fixed behaviour.
Hooks can execute logic at different stages of a pool’s lifecycle. Here are the key hook types:
beforeInitialize // Executes before pool creation
afterInitialize // Executes after pool setup completes
beforeAddLiquidity // Runs before liquidity deposits
afterAddLiquidity // Executes after successful deposits
beforeRemoveLiquidity // Runs before liquidity withdrawals
afterRemoveLiquidity // Executes after successful withdrawals
beforeSwap // Triggers before each trade execution
afterSwap // Triggers after trade completion
beforeDonate // Runs before fee donations to pools
afterDonate // Runs after donation processing
Developers can intercept and change the pool setup using initialization hooks. These hooks run once during pool creation. They’re ideal for setting parameters, configuring the pool, and defining initial conditions. Unlike swap or liquidity hooks, initialization hooks don’t trigger during regular operations.
beforeInitialize hook is the first place where devs can step in during pool creation. It runs before the main pool data is set. So, devs get full control to decide how the pool should be setup.