Aster will launch the fifth phase airdrop "Crystal" on December 22nd.

BlockBeats News, December 18th, Aster announced that it will launch the fifth stage airdrop, Stage 5: Crystal, on December 22nd. The airdrop schedule for this stage is as follows:

· Duration: 6 weeks (December 22, 2025, to February 1, 2026)
· Allocation Ratio: 1.2% of the total ASTER supply (approximately 96 million ASTER)
· Claiming Option: 3-month lockup available

In the design of the mechanism, the 1.2% airdrop allocation is divided into two parts:
· 0.6% Base Allocation: Available for immediate claiming
· 0.6% Lockup Bonus: Unlocked after a 3-month lockup period

Users can choose their claiming strategy:
· Immediate Claim: Only receive the base allocation; the lockup bonus will be burned
· Wait for Lockup Completion: Claim the full allocation (base + lockup bonus)

This design aims to provide instant liquidity, strengthen long-term holding incentives, and accelerate deflation by destroying the bonus through early claiming. Aster also disclosed the advancement timeline for the Aster Chain:

Testnet: End of December 2025
Mainnet: First quarter of 2026
Staking and Governance: Second quarter of 2026

Aster noted that the future launch of its proprietary L1 network will grant it greater autonomy in fee structure, validator economics, and protocol upgrades, reinforcing ASTER's value capture at the fundamental infrastructure level.