DYDX shoots up 10% as buybacks get a quarter of protocol revenue

Decentralized finance (DeFi) trading platform dYdX announced its first-ever token buyback program on March 24, aiming to reinvest in its ecosystem to enhance security and governance.

According to the announcement, 25% of the protocol’s net fees will be dedicated to monthly buybacks of its native dYdY (DYDX) token on the open market.

Following the announcement, DYDX surged over 10% and was trading at approximately $0.731 at the time of writing, according to CoinGecko. The token has gained more than 21% over the past two weeks.

Related: dYdX explores sale of derivatives trading arm

New dYdX distribution model 

Previously, dYdX distributed 100% of its platform revenue to ecosystem participants. Under the new allocation model, 25% will be used for token buybacks, another 25% will fund its USDC liquidity provision program, MegaVault, 10% will be directed to its treasury, and the remaining 40% will continue as staking rewards.

dYdX noted that the current allocation of 25% to token buybacks could increase, with ongoing community discussions potentially pushing this percentage to as high as 100% over time.

Related: DeFi market stages a comeback as derivatives surge

The platform currently holds a total value locked (TVL) of $279 million, according to DefiLlama. It generated $1.29 million in revenue from fees in February and $1.09 million so far in March.

“DeFi festival” waits for summer to end

The DeFi industry commonly references the DeFi summer of 2020 as a benchmark, characterized by rapid user growth driven by yield farming and decentralized applications.

In a recent interview with Cointelegraph, dYdX Foundation CEO Charles d’Haussy predicted that the next significant DeFi boom would occur shortly after summer, potentially beginning as early as September and lasting “months and months.”