Two DEXes walk into a bar — Aerodrome and Velodrome agree to merge, ticker goes brrr 🚀

Aerodrome and Velodrome, two decentralized exchanges operating across the Base and OP Mainnet ecosystems, will combine into a single cross-chain DEX branded "Aero," with launch scheduled for October 21st. The merged entity is planned to operate on Base, Ethereum mainnet, OP Mainnet, Arc, and Ink at launch, with Robinhood Chain and Arbitrum slated to be added afterward. Aerodrome and Velodrome announced the merger plan through official channels.

The token reaction was immediate: $AERO rose 25.5% in 24 hours to $0.89, while $VELO climbed 22.1% to $0.038. Trading desks reported renewed activity in both tokens as the announcement circulated across crypto social media, with $AERO volume rising on multiple venues tracked by CoinGecko and DeFiLlama dashboards.

Under the merger framework, the two protocols will consolidate liquidity and governance under the Aero umbrella, with a unified tokenomics structure spanning the supported networks. Representatives of both projects stated that the goal is to reduce fragmentation between the Base and OP Mainnet DeFi ecosystems by routing trades through a single routing layer.

The combined platform is positioned as a cross-chain liquidity hub spanning Ethereum layer-2 networks, with eventual support for Robinhood Chain and Arbitrum expanding the addressable surface. Both protocols cited user experience and capital efficiency as primary motivations for the consolidation, according to the official joint statement.

Pricing and launch dates remain subject to the migration timeline set for October 21st, and holders of $AERO and $VELO are advised to follow official communications for token conversion details.