APX climbs 400% after ASTER token rollout and CZ shoutout

APX became one of the top gainers for the past day, expanding by 400%. The token rallied after the announcement of a potential swap into Aster tokens, supporting the growing perpetual DEX platform.

APX tokens became one of the top gainers for the past day, as they gained the spotlight for an eventual upgrade into Aster tokens. APX broke out to a new all-time peak, after trading at a lower range. The token pivoted after rebranding from Apollo and going through a prolonged bear market. 

The main reason for the breakout is the launch of Aster Finance and the native ASTER token. The project announced APX holders will be able to upgrade and become part of a new trading ecosystem. 

ASTER is also in the initial stages of trading, going for price discovery. The newly launched token rose to $0.75 hours after its launch, gaining over 375% in the first day of trading. ASTER broke out above $1.3B market cap within hours.

The tokens remain risky, as they still rely on the native Aster exchange, as well as other decentralized pairs. 

APX, ASTER rally after mention by CZ Zhao

In addition to the Aster perpetual futures DEX launch, the two tokens gained exposure from a mention by Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao. He noted the initial ASTER rally, which also boosted APX traders. 

Well done! 👏 Good start. Keep building! pic.twitter.com/oMfOxfsBRS

— CZ 🔶 BNB (@cz_binance) September 17, 2025

A direct message about a newly launched token is rare, and Zhao showed his influence is still outsized when it comes to direct attention for tokens. Zhao avoid explicitly endorsing tokens, but even a brief mention is enough to accelerate the rally.

Binance was already preparing to swap APX, through its Binance Alpha platform. From October 1, all APX tokens will be swapped into ASTER with a 1:1 ratio. However, the rally did not start until ASTER completed its TGE on September 17. The upcoming swap may mean both the APX and ASTER prices may move closer in price, suggesting the APX rally may continue, or ASTER may move downward to close the gap.

The tokens rallied just a day after the launch of STBL on BNB Smart Chain, showing trader exuberance for projects in the Binance ecosystem, as Cryptopolitan reported.

Aster DEX aims to rival Hyperliquid

Aster is a newly growing market, which has been backed by APX Finance and Binance’s YziLabs. The perpetual futures DEX arrives on a market where Hyperliquid still rules the roost. In the past month, Hyperliquid kept gaining on Binance’s perpetual futures market, expanding to over 24% of the combined trading volume.

Aster may attempt to rival Hyperliquid, gaining a personal boost from Zhao. Previously, Binance attempted to build a perpetual futures market, where Hyperliquid grabbed a more significant mindshare. Aster attempts to rebuild the model from scratch and possibly gain mindshare as an alternative perpetual futures DEX. 

Aster already locks in $1.31B in liquidity, with around $270M in monthly volumes, based on DeFi Llama data. The recent price action may boost the project’s visibility and mindshare. As part of the Binance ecosystem, Aster may have a different set of users, as crypto traders are still split by regions. 

As with other Binance Alpha and YziLabs assets, ASTER outperforms other token launches, attracting outsized activity. The rallies arrive just a day after BNB posted a new all-time peak, moving close to $1,000.

Following the APX and ASTER pumps, BNB continued its rally, breaking above $990 and preparing for four-digit records.

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