Lighter buyback mechanism officially launched, LIT token surges 16% in a single day

Lighter Protocol officially confirmed the LIT token buyback plan on January 6, quickly igniting market sentiment and driving a significant surge in LIT price. As of press time, LIT is trading at $3.06, up approximately 16% in the past 24 hours, making it one of the standout emerging DeFi tokens of the day.

From the market performance perspective, LIT has experienced notable volatility over the past week, with prices ranging from $2.33 to $3.37. After the buyback plan was confirmed, funds rapidly flowed in, with spot trading volume soaring to $157.8 million within 24 hours, more than 10 times the previous day, indicating a significant increase in market participation. CoinGlass data shows that the derivatives market has also heated up, with LIT contract trading volume increasing by 87% to $21 million, and open interest rising by 58% to $1.81 million, typically indicating new long positions are being established rather than simple profit-taking.

The core driver of this rise stems from Lighter’s clear adjustment to its tokenomics model. The official statement indicates that all fees generated from the core DEX products and future services will be transparently disclosed on-chain and allocated between growth investments and LIT token buybacks based on market conditions. Unlike dividend models, this mechanism directs all revenue toward buybacks, continuously reducing LIT’s circulating supply and directly linking the protocol’s actual usage with token demand.

On-chain data shows that the Lighter treasury currently holds about 180,000 LIT tokens and approximately $1.35 million USDC, which can be used for market buybacks at any time. Based on current income levels, some market participants expect future buybacks of up to 30 million LIT, accounting for about 3% of the total token supply. Although the specific pace still depends on trading activity, the “protocol revenue + token buyback” structure has significantly altered market expectations for LIT’s long-term value and has become a focal point for long-tail keywords such as “LIT buyback mechanism” and “Lighter tokenomics.”

From a technical perspective, after breaking through the consolidation zone near $2.60, LIT has maintained a short-term upward trend, with highs and lows rising in tandem. The price once touched the upper Bollinger Band at around $3.18, indicating strong upward momentum, but the Bollinger Bands are beginning to flatten, suggesting a possible phase of consolidation or minor correction in the short term. The RSI indicator previously approached 70 but has fallen back to around 60, which appears more like a healthy cooling rather than a trend reversal.

The key short-term level to watch is around $3.00. If the price can stabilize above this level, LIT may continue to open upward space; if it falls below $2.95, a retest of the previous demand zone near $2.80 cannot be ruled out. Overall, the implementation of the buyback plan has become a core fundamental variable driving LIT’s trajectory.