What is Aevo: the derivatives Layer-2 with pre-launch token futures

With higher gas fees and unfamiliar functionality, some traders find the transition to decentralized exchanges (DEXs) a hard bridge to cross when it comes to exclusively trading on DEXs. Fortunately, with up-and-coming DEXs like Aevo, a focus on user-friendly interfaces and cutting-edge scaling solutions is bridging the gap between DeFi and TradFi. That's making it easier than ever for newcomers and experienced traders alike to seamlessly transition to the exciting world of DeFi crypto trading.

Far from being a DEX that's a dime a dozen, Aevo innovates by being a derivatives-first DEX that's supercharged by a custom Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) roll-up solution. To understand how Aevo is changing the DEX landscape, let's look deeper into its features and explore the reasons behind its recent popularity among crypto traders.

TL;DR

• Aevo is a user-friendly DEX focused on derivatives like options and futures.

• The custom EVM solution that Aevo adopts makes use of an off-chain order book and on-chain settlements for faster trades and lower fees compared to most DEXs.

• Pre-launch token futures have recently shone a spotlight on Aevo as it allows for the trading of new crypto projects before they're officially listed.

• Aevo Airdrops further expand upon pre-launch futures efforts as Aevo users are airdropped pre-launch tokens based on the amount of AEVO staked.

• AEVO has a total supply of 1,000,000,000 and a circulating supply of 850,000,000. Its utility includes governance and staking that offers more than 10% APR.

What is Aevo?

Aevo positions itself as the first high-performance derivatives Layer-2 that's focused on options and futures. The Aevo DEX runs on a custom EVM rollup solution and operates an off-chain order book with on-chain settlements. This means that once orders are matched, trades get executed and settled with smart contracts. By combining Layer-2 scalability with various trading instruments, Aevo aims to redefine digital asset trading with its speedy transactions and intuitive user experience.

Why is Aevo so popular?

From exploring Aevo's tech stack to breaking down its user experience, here's why Aevo is quickly becoming a favorite among DEX traders.

Leveraging the power of its Optimistic rollup technology

Unlike most DEXs which tend to use on-chain order books, Aevo adopts a unique combination of off-chain order book with on-chain settlement. Applying its Optimistic rollup technology, Aevo overcomes the limitations of on-chain order books that plague most DEXs. These pain points typically come in the form of slow transaction speeds and high gas fees. Aevo's off-chain order book allows for faster order matching and trade execution, while crucially relying on the Ethereum blockchain for final settlements. This approach ultimately provides the security and transparency benefits of DeFi while incorporating the speed and efficiency usually only seen among CEXs.

Aevo's streamlined user experience

When building its platform, Aevo prioritized the user experience. From creating an account to executing trades, the process is straightforward and designed to be familiar to traders with a TradFi or CEX background. This works in Aevo's favor as it lowers the barrier to entry for DEXs and makes it easier for experienced traders to enter the DeFi space.

Focus on crypto derivatives

Aevo focuses on offering a comprehensive suite of crypto derivative products, including options and perpetual futures contracts. This allows crypto traders to implement various trading strategies, such as hedging existing positions or speculating on future price movements. For crypto traders with a higher risk tolerance, Aevo supports leveraged trading on perpetual futures contracts. This allows users to amplify their potential returns by using borrowed funds of up to 20 times leverage. This caters to experienced crypto derivatives traders who use leverage as part of their strategies to make the most out of every trade.

Aevo's pre-launch token futures

Advanced rollup tech and streamlined UX aside, a key reason Aevo has been making waves in the crypto scene is for its novel pre-launch token futures. Thanks to the recent crypto bull market, we've been seeing a rush of crypto projects emerging and debuting what they've been working on to capitalize on the bullish momentum. Although project tokens aren't yet available for trading, this hasn't stopped the Aevo team from getting one step ahead with their pre-launch futures. This financial product essentially allows crypto traders to get involved in new crypto projects sooner, and trade the tokens of pre-TGE projects before their official release and listing on external exchanges.

While Aevo caps the amount of leverage available for these pre-launch token futures at 2x and imposes a 50% initial margin, this hasn't stopped speculative crypto traders from exploring the vast number of pre-launch token futures available. From Blast and EigenLayer to the currently listed Ethena and Wormhole, you'll find some of today's most exciting pre-launch projects available for trade on Aevo.

Aevo Airdrops

Interested in the pre-launch futures listed by Aevo? By popular demand, the team seems to be doubling down on pre-launch listing efforts by introducing Aevo Airdrops. In short, it rewards users who stake AEVO tokens and those who actively trade pre-launch markets on the Aevo DEX by airdropping them pre-launch tokens. Currently, there are four staking tiers: Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Diamond. Higher tiers offer increased benefits in Aevo Airdrops.

To qualify, you need to stake some AEVO. The minimum for each tier is as follows:

• 1 AEVO for Bronze tier

• 1,001 AEVO for Silver tier

• 10,001 AEVO for Gold tier

• 101,001 AEVO for Diamond tier

With Aevo Airdrop benefits ranging from 60% rebates in trading fees from referrals to a base boost multiplier for pre-launch token trades, it's worth looking into if you're actively keeping up with pre-TGE crypto projects and want to get exposure ahead of their eventual listing.

AEVO tokenomics

Source: docs.aevo.xyz

AEVO is the native protocol token of the Aevo platform and is mainly considered a governance token for the DEX. As with all governance tokens that promote decentralized community governance, AEVO allows holders to propose and vote on proposals to determine future features and upgrades for Aevo. A holder's voting is weighted in proportion to the amount of AEVO tokens staked.

Besides governance, AEVO offers staking utility that rewards users with more than 10% APR. However, this comes with a minimum nine-week staking period before AEVO stakers are allowed to unstake their token holdings. Check out the official Aevo docs to learn more about AEVO staking.

One final point to note is that Aevo is a rebrand of Ribbon Finance. As such, previous Ribbon Finance users are encouraged to perform a 1-to-1 swap of RBN for the all-new AEVO token. For a deeper breakdown of the distribution of AEVO tokens, visit the original RBN distribution page for more details.

Aevo's growth and future roadmap

Source: l2beat.com

With a Total Value Locked of about $75 million, Aevo has experienced noteworthy growth since its open mainnet launch in June 2023. Since then, the DEX has processed significant trading volume, exceeding $1 billion on a single day in November 2023. This early success showcases Aevo's potential to attract new users in an already crowded DEX trading space. To capitalize on this momentum, Aevo's roadmap prioritized user acquisition initiatives like trading incentives for Aevo traders and Aevo Strategies that further expand upon the trading products available.

As for Aevo's future, the team looks to be considering expanding its Aevo Layer-2 development by building the overall ecosystem and allowing for permissionless deployments.

Final words and next steps

Compared to first-generation DEXs that simply provided automated market maker services, many would agree that Aevo has come a long way by targeting a necessary niche in the DEX landscape. By addressing the pain points of traditional DEXs with its innovative tech stack and user-centric approach, Aevo has carved out an edge for itself, attracting both newcomers and experienced traders in the crypto space. Its focus on derivatives trading, coupled with features like pre-launch token futures and Aevo Airdrops for active users, caters to a specific audience seeking advanced trading opportunities. With a strong start and a roadmap focused on user acquisition and ecosystem development, Aevo is well-positioned to continue its growth trajectory and solidify its place as a leading derivatives platform in the nascent DeFi space.

Interested in learning more about DEXs? Check out our article on the top DEX aggregators in DeFi. Alternatively, if you require comparisons to other popular DEXs, read our guide to Uniswap and Curve Finance.