Aster, the decentralized perpetuals exchange backed by Binance founder Changpeng 'CZ' Zhao, has announced a dramatic overhaul of its token emission schedule, cutting monthly ASTER token unlocks by approximately 97%.
Previously, the protocol unlocked 78.4 million ASTER tokens per month on a linear vesting schedule, equivalent to roughly 1% of the total 8 billion token supply. Under the new model, effective immediately, monthly emissions will drop to between 1.8 million and 2.25 million tokens. These new tokens will be distributed exclusively as staking rewards at a rate of 450,000 ASTER per weekly epoch, replacing the previous linear unlock mechanism for the Ecosystem & Community allocation, which represents 30% of the total supply.
The change was implemented in direct response to community feedback regarding token dilution, with the stated goal of reducing sell pressure on the ASTER token. The protocol's total supply currently stands at 7.922 billion ASTER post-burn, with 77.86 million tokens already removed via its buyback program.
This emission reduction is paired with an existing deflationary mechanism. Since December, Aster has operated a buyback program that allocates up to 80% of daily platform fees to purchasing ASTER tokens from the open market. The combination of drastically reduced new supply and active buybacks aims to push the token toward a deflationary state, assuming trading volume is sustained.
The staking system itself is dual-layered, offering a 150,000 ASTER Base APY and a 300,000 ASTER Loyalty Rewards program that scales payouts based on user lock duration and trading activity on the platform. Notably, insider token unlocks for the team's 5% allocation are not scheduled to begin until September 2026, removing a near-term source of sell pressure.
Following the announcement, the ASTER token price showed a positive reaction, trading up nearly 3% over the past 24 hours at the time of the reports. The platform, which recently launched its own privacy-focused Layer-1 blockchain called Aster Chain, competes in the decentralized perpetuals trading space with projects like Hyperliquid and Lighter.
