$200 million tokens hit the market, ASTER opens the week of unlocks

The crypto market is entering one of the busiest weeks for token supply. From December 15 to 21, seven projects will unlock assets worth almost $200 million. The largest unlock of the week is by ASTER — over $75 million.

More than 568 million tokens will enter circulation in total. This is happening amid a weak market response to the December Fed rate cut and ongoing price pressure.

The market faces unlocks during a correction phase

The overall backdrop remains cautious. Bitcoin and most major assets are trading in a correction zone, and the total market capitalization has dropped by 0.5% over the past day.

In such conditions, a sharp increase in supply could intensify pressure on prices. Especially if demand cannot quickly absorb the new volumes.

ASTER releases $75 million and leads in scale

The decentralized exchange Aster is preparing to unlock 78.41 million ASTER tokens worth $75.36 million. This is the largest unlock of the week both in dollar value and in the number of tokens.

According to CryptoRank, the release is equivalent to 3.41% of the project’s market capitalization. The unlock coincides with the launch of the fifth phase of the Double Harvest incentive program.

To participate, users must hold at least 444 ASTER throughout the entire period and meet daily trading volume requirements for perpetual contracts, excluding Bitcoin and Ether. The fourth phase of the program involved 6,895 traders, and the total reward pool was $1 million. The distribution of rewards is expected within seven business days.

LayerZero and Arbitrum will add another $57 million in supply

LayerZero comes second in volume. The project will unlock 24.68 million ZRO worth $37.42 million. This is 2.47% of the total supply and about 10.3% of the token’s market capitalization.

Next is Arbitrum. On Tuesday, the Ethereum layer-two network will release 92.63 million ARB worth $19.78 million. The unlock accounts for 0.93% of the total supply and 1.65% of the capitalization.

Mid-sized projects increase pressure

Vana will unlock 6.12 million VANA worth $17.41 million on December 16. Yooldo Esports will unlock 41.91 million ESPORTS worth $17.22 million on December 19.

STBL deserves special attention. The protocol will release 288.39 million tokens worth $16.12 million. In percentage terms, this is 57.7% of the project’s market capitalization — the highest among all participants this week.

Merlin Chain completes the list. The project will unlock 36.14 million MERL worth $16.11 million. This will increase circulation to 1.72% of the total supply and about 3.32% of the capitalization.

ASTER price under pressure ahead of unlock

Amid expectations of the unlock, ASTER has fallen by about 3% over the week and is trading around $0.93. In November, the token rose to $1.41, after which it entered a correction phase and by early December dropped to $0.88.

On December 3, the price rebounded to the $0.94–$1.12 range, but since then sellers have kept prices below $1.00. The $0.92 level remains a key support for now, while the $0.85–$0.88 zone is seen as the next risk if pressure intensifies.

What next?

The week of unlocks coincides with a period of uncertainty in the market. Investors are waiting to see whether the market will get the traditional ‘Christmas rally’ or if supply pressure will prove stronger.

For traders, this is a moment of increased risk. For the market — a test of its ability to absorb large volumes without a deep correction.

Read more: 2026 could change the crypto market: stablecoins, tokenization, and AI