VELVET, the native token of Velvet Capital, swung wildly on 12 Jun after surging more than 1000% over the week and reaching a record high of $1.85 a day earlier.
VELVET Swings Wildly After AI-Meets-DeFi Hype Fueled 1,000% Weekly Gain
12 June 2026 - 19:32 CEST
By Jona Jaupi
The protocol sits at the intersection of artificial intelligence and decentralized finance, an emerging sector known as DeFAI. The protocol allows users to trade assets, manage portfolios and create onchain investment products, while using AI-powered tools to automate parts of the investment process. Some popular names in the sector include Griffain, Hey Anon, and Neur.
The token is changing hands at around $0.98, up 11% at 16:55 UTC on 12 Jun, according to CoinGecko data.
Valuation gap
Despite a week-long rally of over 1,000%, Velvet's current usage remains relatively small. The project had less than $1mn in total value locked (TVL) as of 12 Jun, according to DeFiLlama, even as its market capitalization approached $700mn earlier in the day.
The disconnect highlights how quickly excitement around new products and emerging narratives can manifest into sharp price moves in crypto markets.
Sandmark reached out to Velvet for comment on the day's rally and downturn, including whether the project has seen an increase in users and trading activity following its recent launches, but has not yet heard back.
Sharp swings
VELVET's sharp swings on 12 Jun highlight how quickly crypto traders can pile into – and pull out of – tokens tied to popular narratives.
The gains coincided with Velvet's integration with pre-IPO markets. On 10 Jun, the company announced that users could trade markets linked to SpaceX, OpenAI and Anthropic through its integrations with TradeXYZ and Ventuals. The products allow users to speculate on the value of the companies before they become available through traditional financial (TradFi) markets.
Product launches
Velvet also said on 12 Jun that it had moved all of its protocol-owned liquidity on Base to Aerodrome, the largest decentralized exchange on the network. The move is intended to concentrate liquidity in one venue and improve trading conditions for the token.
The project also recently launched Velvet X, a social trading platform that rewards users for participating in the ecosystem. Velvet described it as an "invite-only next-generation trading app," designed to help users discover and execute onchain trades.
