Base TVL doubles to $390 million following Aerodrome launch

Base, a Layer 2 Ethereum network incubated at Coinbase, saw a significant increase in total value locked (or user deposits) following the launch of a new decentralized exchange called Aerodrome.

According to DeFiLlama, the network’s TVL surpassed $390 million, double the amount of network deposits recorded on Aug. 28 when Aerodrome launched. Of Base's total TVL, Aerodrome accounts for more than $190 million.

The Base mainnet became publicly available in early August and has since risen to become the fourth most valuable Layer 2 blockchain in terms of TVL, trailing other networks like Arbitrum One, Polygon, and OP Mainnet.

Aerodome accounts for nearly half of Base’s TVL, contributing $193.5 million to the total $391 million TVL, noted Nansen analyst Martin Lee.

The Aerodome team spoke with The Block, offering its perspective on what this TVL growth signifies.

“The growth has been extraordinary and is a validation of our thesis that ecosystem native DEXs can win,” said Alexander Cutler, co-founder of Aerodome.

Boosting liquidity on Base

The development team at Velodrome Finance (a decentralized exchange on OP Mainnet) introduced Aerodrome on Base as a forked version earlier in the week, in collaboration with 20 launch partners.

According to the team, its aim is to boost liquidity on Base and process a large portion of transactions on the network. This approach is similar to its strategy on OP Mainnet with Velodrome, which involves using a set of decentralized finance incentives known as a "flywheel."

"Prior to our launch, the liquidity landscape on Base was fractured and the DeFi ecosystem incomplete. We’ve now helped to onboard over 20 partners to Base and they’ve helped bring an explosion of liquidity to fuel the ecosystem," Cutler added.