Aster Outpaces Lighter in Perp DEX Rankings as Wintermute Buys the Dip After Previous Dump

Aster is regaining momentum in the perp DEX space as it outpaces Lightchain in 24-hour volume. This comes as Wintermute quietly accumulated millions of tokens following a period of aggressive selling. 

Aster Reclaims Top Spot in Perp DEX Rankings

According to DefiLlama data, Aster led the perpetual decentralized exchange (perp DEX) market with over $10.6 billion in trading volume within the last 24 hours. It narrowly surpassed Lighter, which recorded $10.1 billion, while Hyperliquid trailed at $8 billion.

Aster’s resurgence follows weeks of skepticism after DefiLlama initially delisted its trading data. They questioned whether the platform’s decentralized activity was naturally occurring or if it was inflated after citing a “almost perfect correlation” with Binance volume reports.

However, in a quiet reversal, DefiLlama has since reinstated the perps platform on its analytics dashboard. The relisting, done without public announcement, prompted further discussion across the DeFi community. 

Dragonfly’s managing partner, Haseeb Qureshi, noted “big gaps” in the updated trading history and questioned whether the platform’s data had been verified. The platform’s pseudonymous founder, 0xngmi, admitted that the figures remain “a black box.” He also confirmed that the platform’s team had requested reinstatement while a new verification system is being developed.

The move coincides with Robinhood’s recent listing of ASTER for spot trading, which helped lift both tokens from recent lows amid broader market weakness.

Wintermute Returns, Buys the Dip After Heavy Sell-Off

Meanwhile, Wintermute appears to have reversed its stance on the token. After weeks of steady ASTER token offloading, transferring over $4.8 million worth of tokens to exchanges like Bybit and Gate, the institution is now reportedly back in accumulation mode.

On-chain data shows that the firm currently holds around 2.7 million tokens. They are up significantly from just 5,400 tokens following its previous liquidation phase. The renewed buying spree comes as prices hover near recent lows. It essentially suggests the firm may be positioning for an upside recovery in the token and its trading ecosystem.

One such setback came from Aster’s token airdrop event. After identifying gaps in users’ allocation ratios, the DEX halted distribution. Some participants received the wrong amounts, while others had the correct holdings. The team explained this issue and promised to reimburse those affected. They also decided to pause the process to look into the discrepancies.

Although this caused some frustration, the Perps platform stressed its commitment to transparency and fairness. They assured users that their final allocations would not be less than what they were eligible to receive.