Aster Chain Launches Beta with Private Onchain Trading Protocol

Aster Chain has launched its beta version to a select group of traders, introducing a confidential onchain trading protocol that prioritizes self-custody and a manipulation-resistant infrastructure. The beta phase, which began on June 7, is designed to test the platform's core protocol under real market conditions. Participation in the beta is restricted to randomly selected users, who are prompted to sign a new message via their crypto wallet to gain access. This process ensures that only chosen traders can utilize the beta features without any further hurdles, allowing them to continue using the standard trading interface seamlessly.

The Aster Chain Beta design separates trading intent from execution records on-chain. Order placements and cancellations are recorded publicly for basic settlement transparency, while trade details remain private and are validated using zero-knowledge proofs off-chain. This method ensures that final trade positions are not exposed on the public blockchain, allowing beta participants to test trustless settlement without revealing any sensitive data. Developers are monitoring system logs and metrics to ensure performance and reliability, with feedback guiding improvements to balance efficiency with user privacy goals.

Public order books on many decentralized exchange (DEX) platforms pose risks for large traders, as visible position sizes and liquidation levels can be exploited swiftly by others. One notable incident saw a trader lose nearly $100 million due to visible orders, highlighting the need for balancing on-chain transparency and privacy. Industry experts are debating methods to limit data exposure while ensuring fairness, with alternative models like dark pools also under consideration by projects. Traders require tools that protect strategy details from public view, as privacy gaps can quickly harm user trust and platform integrity.

Aster has built a multi-node orderbook to spread order management across network nodes, using Brevis’ Proof-of-Proof ZK structure to validate transactions privately. This allows the system to verify trades without exposing profit or loss data, enabling users to maintain self-custody while avoiding position exposure on the public chain. This framework aims to boost security while preserving market efficiency, with developers monitoring these protocols to ensure fair and private trading. Participants can focus on their strategies without worrying about data leaks.

The test network operates with a 50-millisecond block time for quick updates, with trade execution finalizing in 10 milliseconds to reduce network delay. Aster exchange handles over 150,000 transactions per second at peak volumes reliably, with users paying zero gas fees to make frequent trading cost-effective. Consensus uses a Proof of Stake Authority model for secure validation, and withdrawals are permissionless and use zero-knowledge proofs for secure verification. This performance suite supports fast, self-custody trading experiences with an emphasis on security, helping maintain high throughput during peak market activity.

Traders can deposit assets from Ethereum, Solana, and BNB Chain networks, with Aster exchange integrating cross-chain bridges for seamless and secure asset transfers. Users can trade across blockchains without leaving the trading interface, with supported assets including tokens and stablecoins on multiple popular blockchains. Cross-chain design reduces manual, time-consuming token migrations for all traders, simplifying workflow and enhancing custody across chains efficiently and securely. It allows users to maintain asset control without extra software steps, adhering to self-custody principles for user asset security.

The limited Aster Chain Beta release follows a careful rollout approach, with insights from this phase guiding improvements in future platform versions. The project aims to balance performance with user privacy over time, with this experiment potentially setting standards for private perpetual trading designs. Market observers will track metrics on usability and security for each update, with broader user testing possibly including a larger group over the coming weeks. Feedback will help shape the next beta stages before public release, allowing traders outside the initial selection to access features in future tests.