Ethereum News Today: Aero Unifies Chains as DeFi "World Comes Onchain"

Aerodrome and Velodrome Merge to Form Aero, Expanding Cross-Chain DeFi Hub on Ethereum

The merger of Aerodrome and Velodrome, two leading decentralized exchanges (DEXs) on Base and Optimism respectively, has given rise to Aero, a unified cross-chain liquidity platform set to launch in Q2 2026. The new protocol, developed under Dromos Labs, aims to consolidate liquidity across Ethereum's Layer 2 networks and expand to Ethereum mainnet and Circle's Arc blockchain, positioning itself as a scalable infrastructure for the onchain economy.

Aero's token allocation mirrors the total value locked (TVL) of its predecessors, with Aerodrome holders receiving 94.5% of the new AERO supply and Velodrome holders 5.5%. This reflects Aerodrome's dominance, which currently manages $479 million in TVL compared to Velodrome's $55 million, according to a Coinotag report. The allocation ensures proportional incentives for stakeholders while avoiding over-dilution, a design choice praised by DeFi governance experts for aligning with economic realities, as noted in a Defiant article.

Aero introduces an upgraded operating system, designed to reduce value leakage, lower costs, and enhance trading efficiency. Key features include arbitrage revenue capture, which captures revenue from arbitrage bots, and a seamless cross-chain interface, enabling seamless cross-chain trading from a single interface. The platform will also support zero-knowledge stack integrations, allowing institutional participation through compliant attestations, as covered in a The Block post.

Expansion to Ethereum mainnet and Circle's Arc—a stablecoin-optimized Layer 1—aims to deepen liquidity access and attract institutional capital. Alexander Cutler, CEO of Dromos Labs, emphasized Aero's role in unifying Ethereum's fragmented ecosystem: "Just as the world came online, it is now coming onchain," as reported in a CryptoBriefing piece.

The merger has spurred volatility in AERO and VELO tokens. AERO surged 10% in early November, rebounding from $0.75 support to $0.901, driven by whale accumulation and reduced exchange outflows, according to a Coinotag article. However, team buybacks have declined 20%, raising concerns about sustained demand. Meanwhile, Velodrome's VELO token dipped 13%, reflecting short-term uncertainty amid the transition, as noted in a Coinotag report.

Aero faces competition from Uniswap, which recently proposed its "UNIfication" governance plan to activate protocol fee switches and reduce UNI supply, as covered in a CryptoBriefing piece. Analysts note that Aero's focus on Layer 2 efficiency and cross-chain interoperability could differentiate it, particularly as Base and Optimism scale.

The merger addresses liquidity silos by aggregating pools from Base, Optimism, and Ethereum. Projections suggest Aero could capture 10–15% of Layer 2 DEX volume, exceeding $2 billion monthly, as reported in a Coinotag report. Luis de la Cerda, executive director of the Aerodrome and Velodrome foundations, highlighted the platform's potential to "operate at a scale no other token has ever reached," leveraging MetaDEX03 to coordinate economic activity across chains, as noted in a Defiant article.

Critically, Aero's approach contrasts with recent troubled DeFi mergers, such as the failed alliance between Fetch.ai, SingularityNET, and Ocean Protocol. By maintaining unified governance and transparent on-chain transitions, Aero aims to avoid fragmentation risks, as reported in a Coinotag report.

With a launch window set for Q2 2026, Aero's success will hinge on its ability to execute technical upgrades, attract liquidity providers, and navigate a competitive DEX landscape. For now, the merger signals a pivotal shift toward interconnected DeFi infrastructure, where scalability and efficiency take precedence over isolated protocols.