Aerodrome and Velodrome have merged into a single platform called Aero. The combined entity is targeting a $63 billion total value locked market, according to details of the deal. The move folds two separate liquidity venues into one, a consolidation meant to streamline trading across Ethereum-aligned chains.
Why the two DEXs combined
Aerodrome and Velodrome operated as parallel liquidity hubs, each with its own pool of assets and its own incentives. Merging them into Aero cuts the duplication. Liquidity that used to sit in two places now sits in one. For traders, that can mean tighter spreads and fewer fragmented routes. For the projects that list on the platform, it's a single target instead of two. The stated goal is efficiency — less capital spread thin, more depth in the pools that matter.
The $63 billion figure is the prize. That's the TVL market Aero is going after, a number that puts it in direct conversation with the largest decentralized exchanges. It won't get there overnight. The merger is the groundwork, not the finish line.
What Ethereum-aligned chains get out of it
Aerodrome and Velodrome both built around Ethereum and the chains that orbit it. Combining them under Aero is meant to push liquidity toward those networks rather than scatter it. If the pitch holds, chains that struggled to attract deep pools get access to a bigger, more unified reserve. That's the theory. The execution is where it gets messy — merging two live protocols means migrating pools, resetting incentives, and convincing liquidity providers to move with the brand. None of that is automatic.
The $63 billion question
Targeting a $63 billion TVL market is one thing. Capturing it is another. Aero is now a single name competing against established DEXs that have spent years building their own liquidity moats. The merger gives it scale on paper. Whether that scale translates into real volume depends on whether the combined platform can keep the liquidity providers who made Aerodrome and Velodrome worth merging in the first place. The streamlined structure only helps if users actually show up.
There's also the question of what happens to the old tokens and pools. The facts don't spell out the migration mechanics. Until they do, liquidity providers are left guessing about timelines and terms.
Aero now exists as a single entity with a single target. The next concrete step is the liquidity migration — getting the pools from both legacy platforms onto the new one without bleeding TVL in the process. That's the number to watch. If Aero holds its combined liquidity through the transition, the $63 billion market becomes a real conversation. If it doesn't, the merger is just a rebrand.
