Lighter’s newly launched LIT token is making waves across the crypto world following a major airdrop and a surge of market speculation over its true value.

Key Takeaways

• Lighter airdropped 25% of its LIT token supply, distributing rewards to users from its 2025 points program.

• Traders are split on the token’s fully diluted valuation, with predictions ranging between $2 billion and $3 billion.

• LIT will serve as a core infrastructure and fee token, supporting Lighter’s growing decentralized exchange operations.

• All protocol revenue will be traceable on-chain, with flexibility for buybacks or ecosystem reinvestment based on market conditions.

What Happened?

On December 30, Lighter officially launched its much-anticipated governance and utility token, LIT. The announcement came with a major airdrop event that distributed 25% of the token’s total supply to early users who earned points during the 2025 incentive seasons. As trading sentiment heats up, the token’s implied valuation has sparked debate, with markets split on whether LIT is worth closer to $2 billion or $3 billion.

We are announcing the Lighter Infrastructure Token (LIT)! Lighter is building infrastructure for the future of finance and the native token is key to aligning incentives. In this thread, we will describe the structure of the token, broader vision, and roadmap of use cases.

— Lighter (@Lighter_xyz) December 30, 2025

LIT Token Launches With Focus on Utility and Transparency

Lighter introduced LIT as the economic backbone of its Ethereum-based Layer 2 decentralized exchange. Designed to align incentives within the protocol, LIT plays multiple roles, including governance, fee payments, staking, and network validation. The token will be used for data access, transaction execution, and verification, becoming integral to how users and partners interact with Lighter’s platform.

The company also revealed that LIT is issued by its U.S.-registered C-Corp, giving the project a formal corporate backing and a transparent operational structure. All revenues generated by the exchange will be fully trackable on-chain, ensuring real-time visibility into earnings and distribution plans.

Tokenomics and Airdrop Mechanics

Lighter has allocated its total LIT token supply evenly: 50% for the ecosystem and 50% for the team and investors. From the ecosystem share, 25% was distributed immediately through the December 30 airdrop, covering over 12.5 million points earned during the project’s first two points seasons in 2025.

The remaining ecosystem tokens will be used for future growth, partnerships, and incentive programs. Meanwhile, team and investor allocations are locked for one year, followed by a three-year linear vesting schedule, with 26% going to the team and 24% to investors.

Market Valuation Debate: $2B or $3B?

Even before open market trading began, LIT was stirring up valuation buzz. According to premarket estimates from CoinMarketCap, the token hovered around $3.20, which would place its fully diluted valuation (FDV) above $3 billion.

However, prediction platforms like Polymarket tell a more cautious story. Traders there see roughly even odds for a $2 billion to $3 billion FDV, with expectations for higher outcomes like $4 billion and $6 billion fading since the October market downturn. For context, Hyperliquid’s HYPE token launched with an FDV around $4.2 billion in November.

Lighter’s recent performance has added fuel to the speculation. According to Dune data, the protocol has averaged $2.7 billion in daily perpetual trading volume over the past week, ranking it just behind major players like Hyperliquid and Aster.

Future Plans: Staking and Decentralization Ahead

Looking forward, Lighter plans to roll out staking-based access tiers. Users who stake LIT will gain benefits like enhanced execution quality, capital efficiency, and access to yield-bearing products. Additionally, the token will secure and verify key protocol services such as price data and trade risk validation, eventually leading to greater decentralization of operational roles.

The project, which runs as an Ethereum-specific zk-rollup, also boasts cutting-edge infrastructure, including ZK-SNARKs that cryptographically validate every trade and liquidation. Lighter aims to expand its reach throughout 2026, with ongoing infrastructure development.

CoinLaw’s Takeaway

I think Lighter’s launch strategy reflects a smart balance between hype and real value. In my experience, projects that make all revenue flows visible on-chain, like Lighter is doing, tend to build trust fast. The tokenomics are pretty solid, especially with the long lockup for insiders and a healthy chunk going to the community. But what really stands out is the early trading volume and the built-in utility of LIT across staking, access, and fees. It is not just a governance token. Whether the FDV sticks near $2 billion or climbs higher will depend on how the open market reacts once LIT starts full trading, but for now, it’s off to a strong start.