Catenaa, Friday, January 09, 2026-Lighter’s native token LIT surged 13.9% to around $3.04 on Monday as onchain data suggested the decentralized perpetuals exchange may be initiating a token buyback program.
The speculation followed Lighter’s post on its official X account linking its treasury account on the blockchain and highlighting prior commitments to allocate platform revenues toward ecosystem growth and potential token buybacks depending on market conditions.
While the platform has not officially confirmed a buyback, onchain data showed the treasury’s LIT balance rising to 180,588 tokens, valued at roughly $549,000 as of 10:00 p.m. ET Monday.
Lighter launched its public mainnet in October and quickly became one of the largest perps exchanges. The platform reported over $200 billion in monthly trading volume in December, surpassing competitors Aster and Hyperliquid, which recorded $177.5 billion and $169.3 billion, respectively.
Last week, Lighter unveiled its native token, pledging to allocate 50% of the 1 billion supply to the ecosystem, with revenues from products earmarked for growth initiatives and potential buybacks.
The exchange recently closed a $68 million funding round at a $1.5 billion valuation led by Founders Fund and Ribbit Capital. Lighter’s team previously stated that value generated by all its products and services would fully accrue to LIT holders.
Market observers are watching closely to see if continued buybacks could support token price stability and long-term value creation for LIT participants.
