Velvet Capital’s native token, VELVET, recently emerged as one of the strongest-performing digital assets in the current altcoin market, posting gains of more than 1,300% between June 5 and June 12. The rally pushed the token to a new all-time high near $1.85.
The sharp price increase lifted VELVET’s market capitalization above $730 million on June 12, based on a circulating supply of roughly 420.77 million tokens out of a total supply of 1 billion. Daily trading volume also surged past $100 million as market participants flocked to the token amid growing interest in the DeFAI sector.
Following that rapid ascent, VELVET has experienced a sharp pullback. The token is down more than 36% over the past 24 hours and is trading around $0.32. At this price, it remains roughly 80% below its June 12 all-time high, while its market capitalization has fallen to about $140 million.
Despite the recent correction, VELVET remains up 16% over the past seven days and about 250% over the past 14 days. On a year-to-date basis, the token has gained 133%.
Product Integrations Driving DeFAI Momentum
Last week’s rally coincided with a series of product developments announced by Velvet Capital. The platform recently integrated with Trade.xyz. This enables users to access leveraged exposure to global financial markets, including equities, commodities, and indices, directly through its trading terminal.
The project also expanded into perpetual futures trading through its integration with Hyperliquid. In addition, it introduced synthetic exposure to several highly sought-after pre-IPO companies, including SpaceX, OpenAI, and Anthropic.
Together, these additions have broadened the platform’s functionality beyond traditional decentralized finance applications. Velvet now positions itself as an AI-powered on-chain trading terminal and portfolio management platform. It supports spot markets, perpetual futures, and yield-generating strategies across multiple blockchain networks, including Base, BNB Chain, Solana, and Ethereum.
These developments also align with a broader shift in market attention toward the DeFAI narrative, which combines artificial intelligence with decentralized finance. Market observers have noted that rising interest in AI-focused crypto projects has contributed to increased attention on platforms offering AI-powered financial tools.
Staking Activity and Token Utility Strengthening Demand
Demand for VELVET has also been supported by its utility within the ecosystem. Holders can stake tokens to receive veVELVET, which grants governance rights, revenue-sharing opportunities, fee cashback benefits, and Gems rewards.
Staking activity increased sharply during the recent rally. The value of assets locked in veVELVET rose from approximately $350,000 in early June to over $3 million by June 12. Although it has since cooled to between $1 million and $1.5 million, this still represents roughly 0.8% to 0.9% of the token’s market capitalization and remains significantly higher than early June levels.
The trend suggests that despite price volatility, a growing share of holders continues to lock tokens rather than remain fully liquid. This indicates sustained engagement with the staking mechanism.
Holder Growth Amid High Token Concentration and Exchange Flows
On-chain data shows that the number of VELVET holders on the BNB Chain increased from 13,543 on June 1 to more than 15,095 by June 15. Across all supported chains, CoinMarketCap data indicates the project now has more than 20,000 holders.
However, this expansion in holder count contrasts with a high degree of token concentration. The top five wallets collectively control more than 80% of the total supply.
The largest holder alone reportedly owns over 47% of all VELVET tokens and has been gradually distributing holdings to exchanges over the past month.
Against this backdrop, market participants have also flagged significant movements from large wallets, including those allegedly linked to the project team. Blockchain data shows that approximately 37 million VELVET tokens, valued at nearly $12 million at recent prices, were moved to exchanges such as Bitget, Gate.io, and KuCoin over the past seven days.
Adding to this, market maker DWF Labs transferred an additional 6.68 million VELVET tokens, worth roughly $3 million at current prices, over the past month.
Post-Rally Correction and Emerging Risks
While the earlier surge reflected growing interest in Velvet Capital’s ecosystem and the broader DeFAI narrative, the subsequent pullback highlights emerging structural risks.
The token’s rapid appreciation earlier in the month pushed technical indicators into heavily overbought territory, followed by a sharp correction as momentum cooled. Concentrated ownership, ongoing distributions from large holders, and future token unlocks could introduce additional selling pressure if sentiment weakens further.
On the fundamentals side, protocol activity remains relatively modest compared with the token’s earlier peak valuation. Current total value locked ranges between $674,000 and $690,000 across Base and BNB Chain. Although trading activity has improved, aggressive cashback incentives continue to weigh on net protocol revenue and limit the scale of token buybacks.
Backed by YZi Labs (formerly Binance Labs), DWF Labs, and other investors, Velvet Capital continues to expand its AI agent offerings and cross-chain capabilities. However, sustaining long-term momentum will likely depend on whether increased user engagement can translate into stronger revenue generation and broader ecosystem adoption.
Ephraim Emmanuel | June 13, 2026
Mishael Nwani | June 5, 2026
