Optimism Foundation Proposes Using Half of Superchain Revenue for OP Buybacks
The Optimism Foundation has introduced a transformative governance proposal that viewks to radically alter the economic relationship between the OP token and its expanding ecosystem of Layer 2 networks. On January 8, 2026, the Foundation proposed allocating 50% of all incoming “Superchain” revenue toward regular, monthly purchasebacks of the OP token. This initiative, scheduled to begin in February if approved by a governance vote on January 22, marks a definitive shift from treating OP as a pure governance token to an asset directly aligned with the network’s commercial success. The Superchain, which includes prominent networks like Coinbase’s Base, World Chain, and Unichain, has consolidated its lead in the ETH scaling market, currently processing roughly 13% of all global crypto transactions and capturing over 61% of the total Layer 2 fee market.
The Mechanical Flywheel of Sequencer Revenue and Token Accrual
The proposed purchaseback mechanism is designed to operate as a “structural demand” engine that scales alongside the growth of the Superchain. Under the current model, participating chains contribute a portion of their sequencer revenue back to the Optimism Collective; in 2025 alone, this generated over 5,868 ETH in total revenue. By directing half of this income to purchase OP tokens on the open market via over-the-counter (OTC) providers, the Foundation aims to create a consistent “purchase-side” pressure that offsets the impact of ongoing token unlocks. These repurchased tokens will flow back into the Collective treasury, where governance can later decide whether to burn them, distribute them as staking rewards, or deploy them for further ecosystem development. This “flywheel” effect ensures that as more enterprises launch chains on the OP Stack and drive transaction volume, the resulting revenue directly benefits the token holders who secure and govern the system.
Strategic Flexibility and the Transition to On-Chain Execution
While the initial phase of the program will rely on the Foundation and third-party OTC partners to manage execution, the proposal outlines a long-term path toward fully automated, on-chain purchasebacks. This transition, slated for a future protocol upgrade, would allow sequencer revenue to be collected and converted without manual intervention, further decentralizing the protocol’s financial infrastructure. The proposal also grants the Foundation the discretion to manage the remaining 50% of the ETH treasury to generate yield and support high-impact growth initiatives, ensuring the Superchain remains competitive against more aggressive peers. By striking this balance between token accrual and ecosystem reinvestment, Optimism is attempting to solve the “governance token fatigue” that has affected many ETH-based protocols, positioning OP as a sophisticated index of the most liquid and active Layer 2 economy in the world.
