Aster’s native token, ASTER, has stunned the market with an explosive rally of more than 630% this week, pushing its market cap above $1 billion. The surge puts the project firmly on the radar of traders and investors, even as most altcoins trade sideways. A big reason for the spike is simple: demand is outpacing supply. Analysts note that ASTER is still only about 1/18 the size of HYPE, another hot exchange token. Supporters argue this means the rally is just beginning. Social chatter points to billions in expected monthly trading volume, which could translate into $10 million to $100 million in token buybacks. Such buybacks steadily remove tokens from circulation, adding pressure on price.