Alexander Cutler is a co-founder of Aerodrome Finance, a major liquidity protocol on the Base blockchain. Before venturing into the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector, Cutler worked in politics, technology, and consulting. He is also a core team member at Velodrome Finance, a leading decentralized exchange (DEX) on the Optimism network. ^[1] 

Career

Cutler is a co-founder of Aerodrome Finance, a decentralized exchange introduced on the Base blockchain in 2023 as a fork of Velodrome Finance. His work at Aerodrome has centered on designing liquidity strategies, governance mechanisms, and incentive structures aimed at consolidating liquidity on Base, following a model previously implemented on Optimism Mainnet through Velodrome. He has been involved in developing the platform’s “flywheel” approach, which uses DeFi incentives to attract liquidity providers and trading activity.

Cutler is also part of the Velodrome Finance core team, contributing to protocol design, ecosystem partnerships, and governance frameworks. His activities extend to cross-chain initiatives, including work with LayerZero’s technology to enable asset transfers across networks, such as the movement of tokens like $TRUMP. In addition to his DeFi roles, Cutler has professional experience in politics, technology, and consulting, where he worked across both regulatory and business contexts before focusing on blockchain and decentralized finance. ^[5]

Interviews

Largest DEX on Base

In a September 2025 episode of the CryptoNews podcast, Cutler discussed the rapid growth of Aerodrome Finance, which emerged as the largest decentralized exchange (DEX) on Base, boasting over $600 million in total value locked (TVL). Cutler explained how Aerodrome, which operates without any venture capital funding, focused on democratizing access to liquidity and ensuring that all participants shared in the platform's success equally. He highlighted the unique model of their tokenomics, where neither the team nor investors held vested tokens, fostering a strong alignment of incentives within the community. Cutler also shared insights about the collaborative potential between centralized exchanges and DeFi, particularly as platforms like Coinbase seek to integrate decentralized solutions while maintaining user accessibility. As Aerodrome prepares to launch new initiatives and improvements, Cutler expressed optimism about the future, emphasizing the importance of community and innovative practices in the evolution of decentralized finance. ^[6]

Integrating Base DeFi

On the Unchained podcast in August 2025, Base DeFi builders Cutler from Aerodrome and Luke Youngblood from Moonwell emphasized the opportunities arising from Coinbase's integration of their decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols. They expressed confidence that Coinbase would become a leading on-chain economy, significantly benefiting DeFi projects with automatic token listings and access to its vast user base. Both builders criticized other centralized exchanges and highlighted the importance of sustainability in DeFi, advocating for models that return real value to token holders rather than relying on unsustainable incentives. They noted the increasing competition in the crypto landscape and shared insights into the challenges and strategies surrounding liquidity fragmentation and user engagement in the evolving DeFi space. Overall, the conversation highlighted their commitment to creating an ecosystem centered on decentralization and user value. ^[7]

Aerodrome

In December 2024, on the Unqualified Opinions podcast hosted by Messari, Cutler discussed the innovative decentralized exchanges Aerodrome and Velodrome, highlighting their unique "MetaDEX" model, which integrates features from various leading DEXs to optimize liquidity and user experience. Cutler explained the importance of liquidity providers in facilitating trades while addressing challenges such as impermanent loss. He emphasized the roles of various stakeholders, including liquidity providers, token lockers, and protocols, in creating an effective ecosystem. He also discussed strategies to mitigate issues such as toxic flows in decentralized finance (DeFi), introducing a dynamic fee model designed to enhance on-chain trading experiences. Additionally, Cutler asserted that the Aerodrome model prioritizes maximal token utility and aligns incentives across stakeholders, suggesting that successful DeFi protocols should adopt similar immutable economic models to ensure sustainability and productivity. The conversation encapsulated the fundamental challenges and potentialities of decentralized exchanges in the ever-evolving cryptocurrency landscape. ^[8]

Velo & Aero

In April 2023, Cutler and Ace Da Book discussed their work on Velodrome and Aerodrome, two decentralized exchanges (DEXs) designed to improve liquidity and incentivization within the crypto ecosystem, on Leviathan News. They explained the innovative model of the "MetaDEX," which combines various decentralized finance (DeFi) primitives into a single layer, enhancing growth potential for platforms like Optimism and Base. They noted the evolution of their projects from early forks of Solidly, addressing past shortcomings by tweaking economic models and incorporating features that support liquidity. In response to questions about competition with established protocols like Curve, they detailed the unique elements of Velodrome and Aerodrome, such as transparent emissions and direct incentives that promote efficient liquidity provision. They also teased upcoming features, like the introduction of Slipstream on Aerodrome, which aims to enhance trading efficiency. Overall, the discussion highlighted their strategic positioning within the evolving DeFi landscape and the future ambitions for their protocols as they look to expand further and innovate. ^[9]

Presentations

Unlocking DeFi Value

In a July 2025 EthCC presentation, Cutler discussed the challenges of unlocking value in decentralized finance (DeFi). He explained that while DeFi promised to eliminate intermediaries and offer a fair economic system through trustless code, the reality often involved the reproduction of value extraction similar to traditional firms. Cutler highlighted that many DeFi tokens failed to provide real on-chain utility or value to users, primarily benefiting a small group of insiders instead. He critiqued existing models for their inability to maximize user value and suggested that successful DeFi systems should focus on sustainable stakeholder engagement, genuine utility, and equitable value distribution. By applying these principles, Cutler believed that decentralized protocols could effectively disrupt traditional market structures and offer tangible benefits to their users. ^[10]