Lighter, an Ethereum-based Layer 2 decentralized exchange (DEX) focused on perpetual motion, has announced the debut of its native cryptocurrency, Lighter Infrastructure Token (LIT), to unite traders, builders, and backers as it seeks to converge traditional markets and DeFi.
The supply of LIT tokens will be divided equally. 50% to the ecosystem and 50% to the team and investors. The instant airdrop will reward early participants with free funds by instantly converting 12.5 million points (earned in 2025) into LIT tokens. This corresponds to 25% of the total value of the project fully diluted, or the maximum token possible if all were issued.
The rest will fund future rewards, partnerships, and expansion. Teams (26%) and investors (24%) face a one-year lockup followed by three years of linear vesting, Lightther said in a post on X.
This token is issued directly by the operating company of Lighter, a US registered C-Corporation.
“The future of finance lies in the nexus of traditional financial systems and DeFi, and efficient, secure, and verifiable infrastructure will be important both in adding real-world assets to DeFi and in adding verifiability and composability to TradFi,” Reiter told X.
“Our framework for the utility of the LIT token is therefore to consider how value is exchanged across the financial system and build the infrastructure in a way that value is gained through efficiency, transparency and innovation,” it added.
Writer-based Perpetual’s average trading volume over the past seven days was $2.7 billion, the third-largest after Hyper Liquid and Aster, according to Dune-based data tracker.
Hyperliquid’s HYPE token currently trades with a market valuation of $6.26 billion, making it the 29th largest digital asset in the world.
More than just a governance token
LITs do more than just allow holders to vote on decisions and earn rewards. This powers the writer trading system as the primary token.
Lighter offers trade execution and data validation services at different levels, and higher levels require more LIT tokens to be staked. Staking means locking up your tokens to access these features. These requirements increase as networks become more decentralized. This means that the network is operated by many users rather than one company.
Users and data providers also pay fees on LIT to obtain market information and check prices. Staking helps ensure the authenticity of this data for secure transactions and risk management.
Revenue tracking and buyback policy
XPost explained that the money Lighter makes from its trading platform and future products will be fully traceable on the blockchain, so anyone can publicly see it.
The team may use the proceeds to fuel ecosystem growth or buy back LIT tokens. Buyback means buying tokens to reduce the supply, which can increase the value of the tokens.
These choices do not follow a strict schedule and are determined by overall market trends and the company’s long-term plans.
