Token buybacks are poised to surge in 2026 as projects hunt for price floors

Buybacks may be one of the tools more liberally deployed in 2026. The logic behind buybacks is that a shrinking supply may boost token prices, but there are doubts about the final effect. 

Crypto projects are eager to suggest that buybacks may be a tool to achieve a reasonably high floor price and generate scarcity. Both high-profile and new projects have included some form of buybacks, either as a core feature of their tokenomics or as a later addition to boost prices in a weak market. 

The most notable example of successful buybacks is Hyperliquid (HYPE). The platform generates robust yearly revenues, giving it enough leeway to buy back and burn its native tokens. 

Despite the regular buybacks and a culture of holding, HYPE has seen setbacks, breaking its early ‘up only’ trend. During bull market periods, buybacks have accelerated the rise of HYPE, but they are not always enough to offset selling pressure. As a result, HYPE hovered at around $24.38. 

For now, HYPE remains the most actively bought back token, based on the protocol’s daily fees from trading. For the past day, another $1.7M was poured into buybacks, accelerating by 26% in the past week. Hyperliquid accounts for buybacks as ‘holders’ revenue’, although holders may not directly benefit, and receive no direct rewards.

Buybacks are not a business model

Buybacks and token burns have been proposed as a solution to weakening token valuations. The buybacks offset an earlier trend of low-float tokens, which saw their supply bloat over time. 

Based on Artemis data, buybacks may boost success during a bull cycle, but do not guarantee the success of a token. Digital asset buybacks are also different from stock buybacks in that shareholders benefit from a buyback by owning a larger relative share of an existing business. 

Protocols have varying buyback patterns, with either linear, sporadic, or periodic buybacks. Not all buybacks are reflected in the market price. | Source: Artemis

Some projects start out with extremely early buybacks and burns, but there is no connection between buybacks and price performance. For instance, Pump.fun bought back over 18% of the PUMP supply, while the token still traded near its lows. 

Buybacks are also mostly concentrated into a small handful of tokens, including JUP, Sky Protocol, BONK, Aave, and a handful of other DeFi apps. For smaller projects, even the mention of a buyback is used to create social media hype. 

Projects with buybacks still underperform the market

Based on Messari data, projects with regular buybacks failed to establish a floor price. Instead, many of those projects underperformed the market. 

Buyback protocols also show different patterns of acquisition, ranging from linear to sporadic, or with weekly or monthly burns. Token burns are not always related to buybacks, as in the case of native protocols, which receive the tokens as a fee and destroy them. Actual buybacks use stablecoins or tokens received as fees, and include buying on the open market. 

Some of the buybacks are also not transparent and may include off-market treasuries, which also do not affect the final price.

If you're reading this, you’re already ahead. Stay there with our newsletter.