Ether.fi DAO Launches $50 Million Buyback Vote Amid Growing DeFi Treasury Management Trend
The Ether.fi community has proposed allocating up to $50 million from its treasury to repurchase ETHFI tokens. According to The Block, the buyback program will activate when the token trades below $3. The governance proposal, published Thursday, authorizes the Ether.fi Foundation to execute open-market purchases at these price levels.
ETHFI traded around $0.93 on October 31, down over 89% from its 2024 high. The four-day Snapshot vote opened Friday for community members to decide on the program. The buyback will continue until the $50 million cap is reached, the foundation ends it, or a future vote changes the plan. All transactions will be recorded on-chain and displayed on the project's Dune Analytics dashboard.
This represents Ether.fi's third buyback initiative following prior programs under Proposals #8 and #10. The protocol currently holds approximately $10 billion in total value locked. Ether.fi reports annualized fees of roughly $360 million from its liquid staking and restaking operations.
Why This Matters
The buyback program directly addresses ETHFI's price decline while managing treasury resources. The protocol ties buyback capacity to revenue generation rather than fixed schedules. The foundation plans to expand repurchase activity in proportion to protocol earnings while the token remains below $3.
According to The Block, this approach mirrors traditional corporate finance strategies adapted for DeFi protocols. The program aims to reduce circulating supply and provide price support during market weakness. Token holders gain direct alignment with protocol revenue through structured capital allocation.
The timing reflects broader market conditions where strong fee income meets subdued secondary-market demand. Ether.fi's $360 million annual fee run rate provides substantial capacity for sustained buyback activity. The transparent on-chain execution allows community members to verify all transactions in real time.
Industry Implications
DeFi protocol token buybacks exceeded $1.4 billion in 2025, according to CoinGecko data cited by The Block. This trend reflects a shift toward "protocol-as-business" models that reinvest revenue to support token holder value. Hyperliquid, Pump.fun, Aave, and Uniswap lead the sector in repurchase activity.
BeInCrypto reports that Hyperliquid committed roughly $645 million to buybacks, representing nearly half of all activity. LayerZero followed with a $150 million one-time repurchase, while Pump.fun invested $138 million since July. Just 10 projects account for 92% of total buyback spending across the sector.
Aave DAO proposed a $50 million annual buyback program funded by protocol revenues earlier this month. NFT marketplace OpenSea earmarked 50% of revenue for token repurchases tied to its forthcoming SEA token. Traditional finance sees over $1 trillion in corporate buybacks annually, providing a tested framework for crypto protocols.
Critics question whether buybacks can sustain long-term demand or simply front-load token purchases. However, mature DAO governance and disciplined treasury management have helped institutionalize these practices. Automated on-chain systems from projects like Hyperliquid and Raydium provide transparent, continuous mechanisms. The sector appears to be moving beyond speculative token issuance toward sustainable value capture models.
Further Reading
For those interested in decentralized governance mechanisms and treasury management tools, our comprehensive DAO tooling guide provides detailed analysis of over 100 platforms and tools used in decentralized governance. The guide covers voting systems, treasury management solutions, and community coordination frameworks that enable protocols like Ether.fi to execute complex financial strategies through democratic processes.
