In This Article
- Everything Looked Great at Launch for Aster Crypto..
- True Manipulation Began Once CZ Became Publicly Involved
- Centralization and ASTER Token Supply Controlled by THREE Wallets Raise Huge Red Flags
- BONUS: Forget the Perp DEX Fad - Pepenode (PEPENODE) is Good Ol' Fashioned Meme Coin Degeneracy, With a Twist
ASTER crypto has surged over 7,000% since its launch on September 17, but there is a good chance that the Binance founder CZ-backed project will go to zero before 2025 comes to a close.
The first step in Aster’s demise has already begun, with the token falling -12% overnight and losing its pivotal $2 level. While it has since reclaimed $2, it continues to drop below, and due to the token shooting up so quickly, it has had no time to establish solid support levels. This means that just as quickly it rose, it will fall similarly fast.
🚨 $ASTER IS THE BIGGEST SCAM OF THE LAST 4 YEARS!
Everyone fell for CZ’s backing and rushed to buy by mistake
I uncovered leaked SECRET files with the insiders’ malicious plan
Here’s why you should never buy $ASTER 🧵👇 pic.twitter.com/q2Vk6i66Zl
— niku (@DefiNiku) September 24, 2025
Everything Looked Great at Launch for Aster Crypto..
Aster wasn’t born overnight; it came from a merger of ApolloX (APX) and Astherus, both projects with ties to Binance and CZ’s family investment firm, YZi Labs. The result of the merger was a new DEX on BSC (BNB Smart Chain) that combined trading tech, yield products, and fresh capital.
The vision was bold, being the first multichain DEX with two modes: Simple mode: one-click trades, up to 1001x leverage, and full MEV protection. The second mode is ‘Pro mode’, a full order book, the option for ‘dark pools’ (hidden orders), and low fees.
Aster sold itself as the first “true” CEX-speed DEX for derivatives, and on September 17, the ASTER token went live with a massive airdrop, around 704M tokens distributed instantly.
The price quickly exploded +600% in 4 days, TVL shot above $900M, and more than 330,000 new wallets began interacting with the Aster DEX. On paper, it appeared to be the fastest-growing DEX launch in history.
DISCOVER: 20+ Next Crypto to Explode in 2026
True Manipulation Began Once CZ Became Publicly Involved
After what seemed like a solid start for ASTER crypto, then came the CZ effect. Just days after the token launch, the Binance founder tweeted praise, highlighting that Aster was now the largest BSC-USDT holder after Binance.
It was the first token outside BNB that CZ openly backed, and this move quickly created a gigantic level of hype around the project. The hype reached its peak when MrBeast joined the chain. The influencer dropped around 114K USDT into ASTER, and the move instantly set social media on fire.
Arkham Intelligence tracked and posted the buy, social media proceeded to explode, and CZ replied with emojis. Suddenly, Aster wasn’t just a DEX; it had become a viral spectacle and was thoroughly dominating the mindshare across the crypto space.
Centralization and ASTER Token Supply Controlled by THREE Wallets Raise Huge Red Flags
However, underneath the surface lies the problem for ASTER. Not many people want to talk about it, and are getting caught up in what is being billed as a ‘free money trade’, some serious red flags are afoot.
79% of the entire ASTER cryptocurrency supply is held in just three wallets, all of which are SafeProxy multisignatures tied to insiders. If you add two more linked whale wallets, you hit around ~91%. This means that just a handful of players can nuke the chart whenever they see fit.
These five wallets are all up over 5,000%, meaning they could choose to dump at any time for huge profits, which would effectively kill the token.
ASTER’s tokenomics aren’t helping either. The total supply is approximately 8Bn ASTER, which is eight times larger than that of its main competitor, Hyperliquid. The inflation risk is real, and with such concentrated ownership, any unlock or sell-off could crush retail investors before they can even consider exiting their positions.
Investors should beware, as many will point to trading volume, fee revenue, and TVL (total value locked) as metrics indicating that the Aster platform is performing exceptionally well. However, with the likes of Binance, YZi Labs, and CZ behind this mysterious project, these numbers can be easily cooked.
BONUS: Forget the Perp DEX Fad – Pepenode (PEPENODE) is Good Ol’ Fashioned Meme Coin Degeneracy, With a Twist
While the Perp DEX phase is looking increasingly like a house of cards, and ASTER’s demise will likely trigger a cascading event of mass liquidations and rekt retail investors, Pepenode (PEPENODE) is taking it old school.
A good old-fashioned Pepe-themed meme coin project, with some added GameFi elements that allow presale investors to maximize their earnings with the token.
PEPENODE has attracted over $1.4 million in presale investment with its innovative mining simulator, which removes barriers to entry in mining by requiring less technical knowledge and lower costs. Users can quickly set up virtual nodes and facilities through a simplified dashboard to earn immediate rewards, allowing them to compound their investments.
The combination of mining, staking, and progressive funding rounds is quickly making PEPENODE one of the most highly sought-after presales in 2025. Many analysts predict that it could surpass $10 million in funding and eventually become the next 100x memecoin play this year.
The PEPENODE token is currently worth $0.0010745 at this stage of the presale and is expected to continue rising steadily until the end of the presale.
EXPLORE: Best Meme Coin ICOs to Invest in 2026
Join The 99Bitcoins News Discord Here For The Latest Market Updates
Why you can trust 99Bitcoins
Established in 2013, 99Bitcoin’s team members have been crypto experts since Bitcoin’s Early days.
Weekly Research
100k+Monthly readers
Expert contributors
2000+Crypto Projects Reviewed
