The native token for decentralized exchange Aster surged over 30% after Binance co-founder CZ revealed he holds over $2.5 million in Aster. CZ’s endorsement caused Aster’s price to jump from $0.91 to $1.26 before settling at $1.22. Privacy-focused coin Zcash also saw a 30% rise last week after an endorsement.

Aster’s trading volume spiked over the last 24 hours, increasing from $224 million to over $2 billion. The token’s market capitalization rose from $1.8 billion to over $2.5 billion as well. CZ’s announcement led to increased interest in Aster, with traders like “Gold” opening positions in the token.

Despite the rally, two whales are betting against CZ and shorting Aster with large positions. One whale accumulated 42.97 million tokens worth $52.8 million with a liquidation price of $2. Another trader shorted 15.3 million Aster worth $19.1 million with a liquidation price of $2.1.

In September, CZ showed support for Aster on X and encouraged the developers to keep building. Questions remain about CZ’s ties to Aster, but it’s known that his family office, YZi Labs, invested in Aster’s predecessor, Astherus. Aster was created through a merger between Astherus and APX Finance in late 2024.

Read more at CoinTelegraph: CZ Buy Disclosure Sends Aster Price Soaring Over Thirty Percent