Dromos Labs, the organization behind the Base-based decentralized exchange Aerodrome, has launched a new trading hub dubbed Aero. The new platform will unify Dromos’ Aerodrome network with its sister protocol, Velodrome, live on Optimism, as well as serve as a home base to expand onto additional Ethereum chains.
“Aerodrome has been successful on Base and is excited to expand to effectively service other Ethereum networks via Aero. Just as the world came online, it is now coming onchain. Aero is at the vanguard of a financial system better, faster, and cheaper than the incumbent,” Dromos Labs CEO Alexander Cutler said.
The “central liquidity hub” Aero will first expand to the Ethereum mainnet and Circle’s stablecoin-optimized Arc blockchain, though it is also built for easy integration across the EVM stack. “The home base for Aero is on Base,” Aerodrome Foundation Executive Director Luis de la Cerda said at Dromos’ “New Horizon” event on Wednesday.
Aero, expected to launch in the second quarter of 2026, will unify Aerodrome and Velodrome’s existing AERO and VERO tokens under the single AERO. This token will “serve as a claim on the productive capacity” of Aero’s suite of DEXs, de la Cerda said. The initial distribution of the new AERO token “mirrors the current split” between Aerodrome and Velodrome’s current revenues, meaning approximately 5.5% of the supply will go toward VELO holders and the remaining 94.5% to AERO holders, with “no dilution and no new tokens,” de la Cerda added.
Unified layer
Dromos is not only looking to eliminate fragmented liquidity and users on Aerodrome and Velodrome, but expects the new Aero protocol to serve as a unified trading platform for the onchain economy. This includes rolling out an interface to simply yield-generating “earn” programs, NFT and token trading, and other onchain services. The protocol is “fully composable” and can be integrated by any wallet, exchange, or AI agent, de la Cerda said.
“Every action creates value that flows back to one place, the token,” de la Cerda said. At launch, Aero will be powered by a single unified token.” The point was echoed by Base creator Jesse Pollak, who said Aero could serve as the infrastructure for the global onchain economy.
The announcement of Aero coincides with the launch of a new protocol operating system, MetaDEX 03, to further enhance the decentralized exchange’s cross-chain capabilities and boost rewards for liquidity providers.
The upgraded MetaDEX 03 — reportedly under development for two years — system introduces a “dual engine model,” combining new AER and REV engines that look to “internalize” additional revenue streams for the protocol while also decreasing the potential value that leaks out of the ecosystem to rival automated money markets, like Uniswap, Cutler said on stage at the event.
According to Dromos’ Chief Financial Officer Dan Wick, the REV Engine could increase revenue by 40% while the AER Engine is expected to reduce costs by $34 million, leading to “2.8x more value for token operators.”
Next-gen features for Base
Aerodrome is already the largest DEX on the Coinbase-incubated Layer 2, Base, and top revenue-generating onchain exchange on any blockchain. The protocol has earned approximately $14.79 million over the past 30 days, surpassing Pump’s $8.96 million, according to DeFiLlama.
As part of an attempt to “internalize” additional profits, MetaDEX 03 also integrates Slipstream V3, the first attempt to intercept MEV auction revenue at the DEX level from centralized sequencers, according to Cutler. Traditionally, MEV fee auctions at the sequencer level, equating to hundreds of millions of dollars worth of value, Cutler added.
Dromos is also introducing “verified pools” that enable developers to “plug in” different zero-knowledge stack — like Coinbase attestations and World verifications — providing a way for institutions to compliantly interact with and trade on the DEX. The protocol will also feature “Metaswaps,” a cross-chain bridging and swapping tool, “optimized for the entire EVM ecosystem.”
© 2025 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
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