DeFiLlama, a leading DeFi data aggregator, has delisted the trading volume for Aster DEX from its dashboard. The action was taken following the discovery of highly unusual volume patterns that strongly suggest wash trading, which is a form of market manipulation in which an entity simultaneously sells and buys assets to inflate market activity.
The delisting quickly impacted the ASTER token, dropping 10% from its previous trading level of $2.00 (with a market cap of $3.31 billion, according to CoinMarketCap). The incident raises concerns over data verification within the rapidly evolving decentralized exchange sector which is inherently supposed to solve transparency issues in finance.
Volume Data Found to Be Nearly Identical to Binance
According to 0xngmi, the founder of DeFiLlama, the team detected an abnormal phenomenon during a routine data audit on X.
The volume of perpetual futures traded on Aster DEX was found to be in near-perfect synchronization with the volume recorded on Binance, especially in major trading pairs like XRPUSDT. Recently, XRP has shown strong price momentum with significant on-chain accumulation, attracting a lot of attention.
Learn more: XRP Holds Strong Above $2.90 as Crucial ETF Decision Window Approaches
The XRPUSDT trading pair’s volume on Aster witnesses a 1:1 correlation with Binance – Source: 0xngmi on X
The ratio between Aster’s volume and Binance’s was approximately 1:1. This is highly unusual for decentralized exchanges, as user behavior and liquidity pools naturally cause different trading fluctuations compared to a centralized platform, especially CEX giants like Binance.
In contrast, Hyperliquid, another perp DEX, shows a more natural data variation, or decorrelation, compared to Binance. This means Hyperliquid’s volume varies at different times, reflecting more organic trading activity.
The volume of XRPUSDT on Hyperliquid shows a more organic activity. Source: 0xngmi on X.
The Problem of Data Transparency
The issue results from Aster DEX’s lack of granular data reporting. DeFiLlama’s team was unable to verify the legitimacy of the volume because Aster failed to provide low-level transaction details, such as the addresses of takers, makers, or specific transaction IDs.
DeFiLlama stated the volume data for Aster will remain delisted until the DEX can provide the necessary transparent data to prove its liquidity is organic and its figures are accurate.
As per CoinMarketCap, Aster’s token is now trading at $1.84, raising over 2089% in just the last 30 days.
