On September 18, 2025, former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) made a rare social media post featuring a chart unrelated to Bitcoin or BNB—it showcased the native token of the emerging decentralized perpetual exchange Aster. Within hours, the token’s price surged by 400%. This move was not only seen as a public congratulations but also resembled a declaration of war against Hyperliquid. Although CZ has stepped away from Binance’s frontline management, his influence still sways market sentiment, and his endorsement of Aster has intensified the DEX competition.
Aster is no newcomer out of nowhere. It was born in late 2024 from the merger of yield protocol Astherus and perpetual contract platform APX Finance, with its sights set squarely on Hyperliquid’s market share. Its strength lies in its cross-chain strategy, integrating liquidity from BNB Chain, Ethereum, Solana, and Arbitrum to address the fragmentation of multi-chain assets. Since its launch, the platform has served 2 million users, with cumulative trading volume exceeding $500 billion, demonstrating undeniable growth potential.
Unlike Hyperliquid’s vertically integrated model of building its own blockchain, Aster chooses to leverage existing public chain ecosystems. While this approach introduces technical complexity, it offers broader coverage and composability with other DeFi protocols. For example, users on Aster can earn BNB staking rewards, generate trading fee income, and form a liquidity闭环 through its stablecoin USDF. Notably, its "hidden orders" mechanism and high-leverage options provide traders with a more flexible and differentiated experience.
However, challenges remain evident. Hyperliquid currently holds 70% of the decentralized derivatives market share, with a daily trading volume exceeding $800 million. Its token, HYPE, also enjoys strong price support due to an aggressive buyback mechanism. In contrast, while Aster emphasizes community allocation in its tokenomics (53.5% allocated to users and rewards), its short-term buyback efforts are insufficient. Moreover, its TVL has rapidly declined from a peak of $2 billion to $655 million, exposing concerns about user retention and sustained adoption.
It is worth noting that Aster enjoys deep support from the Binance ecosystem. YZi Labs invested in its predecessor, Astherus, as early as 2024 and has built a cross-chain liquidity and yield network through collaborations with protocols like Pendle, Venus, and PancakeSwap. This means Aster is not just an independent project but a key chess piece in Binance’s ecosystem to counter Hyperliquid.
Looking ahead, Aster plans to launch a zero-knowledge proof-based privacy solution and its proprietary Layer 1 blockchain, Aster Chain, to strengthen its technological moat. However, the question remains: Can it truly shake Hyperliquid’s foundation, or will it merely become an expensive "hedge" for Binance? Whether this "DEX war" will reshape the market landscape or turn out to be a short-lived capital frenzy remains to be seen.
