The MetaDEX is here and has already seen success

The MetaDEX is the DEX model underlying Aerodrome and Velodrome, the central trading and liquidity hubs on Base and Superchain. It combines the best features of Curve, Convex, and Uniswap into one streamlined, powerful design. The MetaDEX’s efficient liquidity pools and incentive system allow protocols to build deep liquidity on their tokens while offering traders exceptionally low slippage swaps.

Aerodrome, as an example, has distributed over $600 million in rewards to Base users, supporting more than $22 billion in volume and is currently attracting about $500 million in TVL. Aerodrome has also emerged as a protocol onboarding engine for Base, successfully integrating over 100 protocols into the ecosystem.

But what makes the MetaDEX model truly unique isn't just its performance—it’s how it coordinates and distributes value in alignment with the core philosophy behind DeFi.

The MetaDEX and the promise of DeFi

The digital era is defined by one fundamental truth: if something can be distilled into code, it will be. Code, being weightless and globally accessible, demands less infrastructure and fewer intermediaries. This is the essence of DeFi: it eliminates traditional intermediaries and captures the true value of code by transforming complex systems into trustless, efficient, and transparent operations.

The MetaDEX is built on the principle of immutable, on-chain utility, with a clear focus on aligning the incentives of all participants. Every week, for instance, Aerodrome distributes AERO emissions to reward liquidity providers (LPs) for their capital. Over 19,500 veAERO holders decide which liquidity pools receive the AERO emissions through onchain voting. In return, veAERO voters receive 100% of the value created by the pools; trading fees and other protocol incentives.

In other words, the MetaDEX’s structure ensures that value flows permissionlessly to its participants. All rewards are distributed based on real utility and long-term engagement, which creates a positive-sum, open economic system free from intermediaries.

What's more, the development of MetaDEXs is funded entirely through veVELO and veAERO voting rewards, eschewing private sales or liquid token allocations for core contributors and instead aligning incentives perfectly with the greater user community.

The MetaDEX exemplifies how a DeFi protocol can thrive by leveraging the collective capabilities of decentralized, permissionless systems while delivering value to its participants. However, the MetaDEX was not ideated overnight; its design builds on years of trials and errors encountered by the DeFi space.

What to expect from this account

This series traces DeFi’s history to distill the key learnings that make the MetaDEX the growing powerhouse it is today and to look ahead at its potential as it embraces the principles of transparency, efficiency, and value distribution promised by DeFi.

Part 1 explores decentralized exchanges DEXs and outlines the key challenge they face: bootstrapping a sustainable marketplace that will serve as the backbone of the onchain economy.