Optimism governance has approved a proposal that more closely links the OP token to the economic performance of the Superchain, marking a notable change in how one of Ethereum’s largest layer 2 ecosystems approaches token value and revenue usage.
The proposal was approved with 84.4% of votes in favor, according to the Optimism on-chain governance portal, after several days of discussion between delegates and token holders.
The OP token remained slightly lower over the past 24 hours.
Under the plan, the Optimism Foundation will allocate 50% of the net revenue from the Superchain sequencer to recurring OP token buybacks over a 12-month pilot period starting in February. Remaining revenue will continue to support ecosystem funding, grants, and operations.
The move represents Optimism’s first formal effort to connect demand for OP tokens with network activity across the Superchain – a growing collection of OP Stack-based chains that includes OP Mainnet, Base, Unichain, World Chain, Soneium, Ink and others.
Since its launch, OP has primarily functioned as a governance token, giving its holders influence over protocol upgrades and treasury spending. The recently approved buyback mechanism introduces a different dynamic: as Superchain usage grows, so does the capital allocated to purchasing OPs on the open market.
According to the Optimism Foundation, Superchain sequencers generated approximately 5,900 ETH in revenue over the past year, a figure that could increase as additional chains come online and transaction volume increases.
OP tokens purchased through the buyback program will be held in the Optimism Collective treasury. The proposal does not require burning the tokens or removing them from circulation, leaving their future use (including possible staking, incentives or burning mechanisms) to subsequent governance decisions.
That flexibility was a key point of discussion during the proposal’s review period, with some delegates arguing that it preserves optionality, while others pushed for clearer long-term commitments.
“Governance approval of the buyback proposal marks an exciting first step in expanding the role of the OP token. Optimism’s OP Stack is becoming the settlement layer for the next generation of financial systems, and this program will help align the value of the OP token with the success of the Superchain ecosystem,” said Bobby Dresser, CEO of the Optimism Foundation..
Read More: Optimism Community Starts Voting on OP Token Buybacks
