Behind OP surpassing $0.34: How the Foundation's buyback proposal strengthens token value support

OP briefly touched $0.34 today, hitting a recent high, with a 24-hour trading volume exceeding $100 million. This surge is not accidental; it is backed by a major proposal recently put forward by the Optimism Foundation: using 50% of Superchain revenue to buy back OP tokens. This is not only a price catalyst but also a redesign of the token economic model.

Fundamental Support Behind Price Performance

According to the latest data, OP is currently trading at $0.32, up 0.95% in 24 hours, with a high of $0.34. Over a longer timeframe, OP has increased by 5.85% in 7 days, showing a clear upward trend. In terms of trading volume, 24-hour volume reached $103 million, a 40.23% increase from the previous day, indicating a significant rise in market participation. Market capitalization has grown to $615 million, an increase of $5.77 million from yesterday.

This synchronized rise in price and volume typically reflects positive market expectations for fundamental improvements. The most direct catalyst is the buyback proposal initiated by the Optimism Foundation on January 8.

Core Mechanism of the Buyback Proposal

The Commitment Behind the Numbers

The Optimism Foundation proposes to launch a 12-month buyback program starting in February. Based on data from the past 12 months, the Superchain (including ecosystems like Base, Unichain, World Chain, etc.) generated a total income of 5,868 ETH, of which 50%—approximately 2,934 ETH—will be used to buy back OP tokens. At current prices, this supports a continuous monthly buy volume of about $8 million.

This figure may seem modest, but its significance is profound. It establishes a sustainable value recirculation mechanism: the more prosperous the ecosystem, the higher the Superchain income, the more OP is bought back, and the stronger the token’s value support.

Governance Voting Timeline

• January 22: Community voting
• February: Official launch of the buyback plan
• Duration: 12 months of ongoing buy support

This clear timeline provides the market with transparent expectations.

Why This Proposal Is Important

First, it strengthens the link between the token and the ecosystem

Traditional Layer 2 tokens often face the issue of weak correlation between token value and ecosystem development. OP, through this proposal, directly ties the economic benefits of the Superchain to the token’s value. The more income the ecosystem generates, the more support the token receives. This “mutual prosperity and decline” mechanism can more effectively incentivize ecosystem participants.

Second, it improves the token economic model

The bought-back OP can not only be burned (reducing circulating supply) but also used for ecosystem incentives or rewarding token holders who participate in securing the network. This means OP is evolving from a simple governance token into a more comprehensive economic model that includes burning, incentives, and security participation.

Third, it enhances capital efficiency

The proposal also authorizes the Foundation to flexibly manage remaining Ethereum treasury assets for staking profits, liquidity enhancement, and ecosystem growth support. This reduces cumbersome governance processes, allowing funds to be deployed more quickly into ecosystem development.

Long-term Outlook for Ecosystem Development

The reason OP can propose such a buyback plan is due to stable income from the Superchain ecosystem. Data shows that Base, as the most active ecosystem chain within the Superchain, contributes the majority of revenue. The overall trend of Ethereum Layer 2 ecosystems is upward:

• OP Stack supports over 50 blockchains
• Total assets secured amount to $17 billion
• Optimism handles 15% of global crypto transactions
• Millions of transactions processed daily

These figures demonstrate that the OP ecosystem has achieved considerable scale and attractiveness. As Ethereum’s ecosystem continues to grow, Superchain revenue has room to increase, which could lead to an expansion of the buyback program in the future.

Summary

OP briefly reaching $0.34 is not an isolated price fluctuation but a result of strategic adjustments by the Foundation. Through the buyback proposal, Optimism is implementing a sustainable mechanism to strengthen token value, improve the token economic model, and deepen the connection between the token and ecosystem development. This approach is relatively rare in the Layer 2 space and presents a clear value support logic to the market. In the short term, the January 22 voting outcome will be a key milestone; in the long term, the effectiveness of this mechanism will depend on whether the Superchain ecosystem can sustain continuous growth.