Aster CEO Leonard talks about the 10-year journey of transformation: from the failure of P2P online lending to becoming an encryption giant.

In the world of cryptocurrency, success is often built on a foundation of failure. Aster CEO Leonard recently publicly shared his entrepreneurial journey, revealing the transformation from a Hong Kong investment banking technician to a leader in decentralized financial protocols, which includes multiple failed attempts and crucial turning points, showcasing how a true cryptocurrency veteran finds the path to success amidst market fluctuations.

From High-Frequency Trading to P2P Lending: Leonard's Early Entrepreneurial Attempts

According to an interview on September 29th with Mable (@Mable_Jiang), the founder of Trends, Leonard's career began in a technical position at an investment bank in Hong Kong, focusing on high-frequency trading system development. After accumulating 5 years of experience in financial technology, Leonard was inspired by the "Internet+" wave at the time and decided to embark on the path of entrepreneurship.

"After working in investment banking for 5 years, I started trying to start my own business, and the narrative at that time was 'Internet+'; my first venture was a P2P lending project," Leonard recalled. However, this entrepreneurial attempt ultimately ended in failure, not only for the project itself but the entire P2P lending sector in China faced severe challenges. This failure provided Leonard with valuable lessons that laid the groundwork for his later journey into cryptocurrency.

First Experience in the Cryptocurrency World: Starting with Ethereum ICO

Leonard's entry into the cryptocurrency space was through participating in the Ethereum Initial Coin Offering (ICO). "I first entered the crypto space by participating in the Ethereum ICO, and after making money, I thought I was a genius, only to lose it all in the next three trades," Leonard admitted. This experience not only made him aware of the high risks in the crypto market but also sparked his strong interest in blockchain technology.

After experiencing the ups and downs of the trading market, Leonard turned his attention to technical development and joined the IBM Blockchain's Hyperledger ecosystem to develop a lending platform project. However, this attempt also encountered setbacks: "Clearly, we chose the wrong ecosystem; we should have showcased our skills on Ethereum." Leonard's words reflect the dilemmas faced by early blockchain developers when choosing their technological path.

The Rise of Aster: Anonymous Leadership and Explosive Growth

Today, Leonard leads Aster in a completely anonymous manner, a decentralized financial platform formed by the merger of the yield protocol Astherus and the perpetual DEX (APX). Aster officially announced its brand overhaul in April, aiming to unify the advantages of both platforms and stand out in the competitive field of perpetual contract DEX.

Notably, Aster's native token soared rapidly after its launch on September 17, attracting significant attention from investors and users. However, unlike the transparency of the token price, Leonard chose complete anonymity, which, while not uncommon in the cryptocurrency space, still sparked curiosity within the community about his background and credentials.

Leonard's X (formerly Twitter) profile is equally mysterious, with a profile picture of a hooded figure and a bio that simply states "CEO @Aster_DEX. Rethinking the future of decentralized trading." The account was created in March of this year, just shortly after Aster announced its rebranding.

Learning from Failure: Pioneering Attempts with NFTs and Token Schemes

Before joining Aster, Leonard also developed NFT and token solutions for a gaming platform, but the project ended in failure due to the market not being mature enough. "It was too ahead of its time and ended in failure as well," Leonard commented on his NFT entrepreneurship attempt. This experience reflects the "timing" challenge that crypto innovators often face—while the technology may be ready, market acceptance has not yet aligned.

These failures shaped Leonard's business philosophy and Aster's development strategy. He emphasized that in the crypto space, audits, community feedback, and long-term commitments can somewhat compensate for the lack of traditional transparency.

Aster's Strategic Positioning and Future Challenges

In the AMA recorded in April, Leonard elaborated on Aster's grand vision: to dominate two key revenue verticals in the cryptocurrency space—exchanges and lending. The platform is divided into two modes: Simple Mode (fully on-chain, no deposits required) and Professional Mode (built around an order book for professional traders).

Leonard explained that Aster's core competitiveness lies in combining revenue expertise with a permanent decentralized exchange (perp-DEX), bringing various growth levers to the platform. To control risks, Aster has implemented a multi-oracle architecture with internal risk monitoring.

However, Leonard also admitted the challenges faced by Aster: "We are also lagging behind in mobile experience, which is a common issue in Web3." In addition, insufficient trading depth is another obstacle the platform needs to overcome.

Balancing Anonymous Leadership and Community Trust

In projects where the identity of the founder is publicly known, the responsibilities are clear and defined. In anonymous projects, participants must rely on code audits and community oversight to establish trust. Leonard works to bridge this gap through AMAs and social media interactions, emphasizing a culture of community feedback, third-party security audits, and a commitment to long-term goals.

It is worth noting that transparency does not always guarantee authenticity. There are numerous cases in the history of cryptocurrency where leaders with public identities have ultimately misled the community, reminding investors to consider multiple factors comprehensively when evaluating projects.

From Failure to Success: Leonard's Entrepreneurship Insights

Leonard's entrepreneurial journey showcases the typical trajectory of a successful figure in the crypto space: starting from traditional fintech, experiencing multiple entrepreneurial failures, honing trading skills amidst the fluctuations of the crypto market, and ultimately finding the intersection of technology and market. His story reminds us that in the rapidly evolving crypto world, failure is often a prelude to success, and the key is to draw lessons from each setback and continue to innovate.