Crypto protocols are spending $640 million on token buybacks as investors pivot to AI stocks

Digital-asset buybacks have reached approximately $640 million year-to-date as of late August, according to blockchain analytics firm Allium Labs. That figure dwarfs the mere $366,000 in token repurchases recorded across all of 2024, representing a staggering escalation in how protocols are choosing to deploy their revenue. Nearly 90% of that $640 million comes from just two names: Hyperliquid and pump.fun. Hyperliquid is the clear heavyweight here. The decentralized perpetuals exchange has funneled 99% of its trading-fee revenue into purchasing and permanently canceling its HYPE tokens. Since launching in December 2024, the protocol has executed a cumulative $1.3 billion in buybacks. HYPE has surged roughly 70% even as the broader crypto market has cratered. Sky Protocol has taken a more modest approach, executing $26 million in buybacks for its SKY tokens. A market looking for a floor Bitcoin has dropped around 38% from its peak. XRP and Solana have both fallen by approximately 60%. The corporate finance playbook, tokenized Token buybacks function similarly to stock buybacks in traditional markets. A protocol uses its own revenue to purchase tokens from the open market, reducing ...