ASTER price bounces back, but DeFiLlama exit and unlock threaten rally
- Aster is rebounding after a sharp market crash, regaining key price levels.
- DeFiLlama delisting, however, sparked trust concerns across the DeFi community.
- Upcoming token unlock and delayed airdrop also pose new volatility risks.
After suffering one of its steepest crashes to date, the Aster (ASTER) cryptocurrency is once again showing signs of life.
The decentralised exchange token has rebounded more than 13% in the past 24 hours, recovering from a deep selloff that wiped out over half of its market value earlier this month.
The rebound follows a chaotic week in the crypto market that saw more than $20 billion in leveraged positions liquidated — the largest single-day wipeout in digital asset history.
Aster, which had climbed to prominence after rebranding from APX, was hit particularly hard, plunging nearly 52% from its September highs around $2.30 to as low as $1.10.
The crash came after a string of damaging events, including its abrupt removal from DeFiLlama, a $12 million token transfer to Binance, and a delay in its highly anticipated Stage 2 airdrop.
DeFiLlama delisting raises deeper questions
Aster’s removal from DeFiLlama last week was more than a simple data correction. It reignited a broader debate about transparency and trust in decentralised finance (DeFi).
The analytics platform flagged Aster’s reported volumes for suspicious similarities with Binance’s perpetual market data, suggesting the exchange’s activity might not be entirely organic.
For a project that had quickly climbed to the top of the DEX leaderboard, the delisting was a major credibility blow.
The controversy highlighted a deeper issue within DeFi of how much the supposedly trustless system still depends on centralised gatekeepers to define what’s real.
Experts note that roughly a quarter of exchanges still display signs of inflated activity through wash trading or automated self-dealing.
When DeFiLlama pulled Aster’s data, some, like Bolivian, accused the aggregator of acting as a centralised authority.
Others, like Simon Dedic, defended its decision, saying it protected the integrity of market data. The incident served as a reminder that in a world built on transparency, trust remains the weakest link.
Aster airdrop delay and token unlock weigh on outlook
Adding to the uncertainty is Aster’s upcoming Stage 2 airdrop, which the team postponed from October 14 to October 20 after complaints about allocation discrepancies.
The developers have, however, confirmed that 4% of the token supply will soon move from the Airdrop Reserve to the project’s Treasury contract, ready for the unlock.
Heads up, community.
We’re moving funds on-chain to prepare for the upcoming Stage 2 $ASTER airdrop claim.
A total of 4% of $ASTER tokens will be transferred from the Airdrop Reserve to the Aster DEX Treasury contract.These are official transactions conducted by the team.…
— Aster (@Aster_DEX) October 13, 2025
While the delay has temporarily eased selling pressure, it has also raised concerns about future dilution.
More than half of Aster’s total supply remains designated for upcoming airdrops, and the lack of clear vesting details could spark volatility once tokens enter circulation.
Bulls return, but resistance looms
Despite these challenges, Aster’s price has rebounded sharply, trading around $1.56 after recovering key support at $1.50.
Technical indicators show improving sentiment. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) has climbed above the neutral 50 mark, while the MACD has turned positive, suggesting renewed buying pressure.
A clean break above $1.60 could open the path to $1.70 and eventually the psychological $2 level if momentum holds.
On-chain data also supports the bullish turn. Aster’s total value locked (TVL) has risen slightly to $2.16 billion, signalling that liquidity is slowly returning to the protocol.
The rebound in TVL, while modest, suggests users are regaining confidence after last week’s panic.
However, analysts caution that the pattern resembles a “dead cat bounce” common after steep selloffs.
$ASTER this might be unpopular, but there’s a valid case to be made that despite the liquidation, Aster’s still forming another lower high while bulls try to regain momentum.
The rejection around $1.53 lines up pretty nicely with both the top of the descending channel and the… pic.twitter.com/FAztwhn2Pl
— Ardi (@AltcoinArdi) October 13, 2025
If the bullish pressure fades, the price could retreat toward $1.25 or even $0.97.
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