coindesk.com
The Optimism community started voting on a governance proposal linking the value of the OP OP$0.3070 token more directly to the economic performance of the Superchain, a growing network of Ethereum layer-2 blockchains built using the OP Stack.
If approved, the plan introduced by the Optimism Foundation will dedicate half the ether ETH$2,951.25 revenue generated by the Superchain sequencer to monthly buybacks of the OP token over an initial 12-month period.
The foundation said the plan represents a significant evolution for OP, which has primarily functioned as a governance token, and expects it to translate into structural demand for OP.
“Every transaction across every OP Chain expands the base from which buybacks operate,” the proposal states, framing OP as a token increasingly aligned with network usage in addition to its governance role.
Voting opened on Thursday and will close on Jan. 28 at 2 p.m. ET (19:00 UTC).
Superchain revenue and scale
The Superchain is a collection of layer-2 networks that share a common technical stack and governance framework. They include the OP Mainnet, Base, Unichain, World Chain, Soneium and Ink. Each chain contributes a portion of its sequencer revenue back to Optimism.
Over the past 12 months, the ecosystem has generated 5,868 ETH in sequencer revenue, all of which was allocated to a governance-controlled treasury. As more chains join the Superchain, the revenue base is expected to grow.
Based on last year’s figures, allocating 50% of revenue to buybacks would have resulted in roughly 2,700 ETH, about $8 million at recent prices, being used to purchase OP, according to the proposal.
How the buybacks would work
Under the plan, the foundation would conduct monthly ETH-to-OP conversions. Conversions would take place within a predetermined window each month, without regard to price, and would be paused if certain conditions are not met.
The foundation said it plans to publish a dashboard showing trade data such as pricing, pacing and balances. Purchased OP tokens would be held in the collective's treasury alongside remaining ETH revenue.
Initially, the buyback mechanism will be operated by the foundation under fixed parameters designed to limit discretion. Over time, execution could move fully onchain, reducing the foundation’s role.
While the initial phase involves holding repurchased tokens in the treasury, the proposal outlines several potential future uses for them. These include token burns, ecosystem funding, or distribution to participants involved in securing the network as interoperability and sequencer customization features roll out through 2026.
Read more: Optimism proposes OP token buybacks using 50% of superchain revenue