Recently, @DeFi_JUST completed its second large-scale buyback and burn of JST. Here are my thoughts:
This $JST buyback and burn is not only symbolic but also verifies one thing: DeFi's deflationary potential can indeed be achieved through cash flow.
■ A total of 525 million $JST were burned, representing approximately 5.3% of the circulating supply at the time, corresponding to a market capitalization of about $21 million.
Including the 560 million JST burned in the first round in October 2025, the cumulative amount burned in less than three months has approached 11% of the initial supply.
The key is not the quantity burned, but rather—where does the money come from?
All repurchase funds came from actual revenue generated by the protocol:
※ Q4 Protocol Net Revenue ≈ $10.19 million
※ Previously Carried-Over Revenue ≈ $10.34 million
No share issuance or external financing was involved.
It followed the simplest, yet most difficult, path:
Protocol revenue → Market repurchase → Permanent burning.
This positive feedback loop was clearly defined in the DAO proposal passed in October 2025; now it's simply being strictly implemented according to the rules.
Looking at the underlying support, it's actually more robust than many people imagine.
1️⃣ JustLend DAO:
> TVL has remained stable above $6.5 billion for a long time.
> sTRX staking exceeds 9.3 billion TRX.
> Energy leasing, after fee optimization, has become a stable source of cash flow.
2️⃣ $USDD is also gaining momentum:
> Multi-chain TVL doubled within two months, exceeding $1.3 billion.
> The excess returns brought by multi-chain operations are gradually becoming the second engine for JST buybacks.
Market feedback is equally direct, since the first burn:
✅ JST's cumulative increase exceeds 38%.
✅ Trading volume has increased simultaneously.
✅ Increase of 13%+ in the week following the second burn.
This is more like market recognition of the value model than short-term sentiment-driven.
And $JST focuses on long-term structural changes:
Continuously decreasing circulating supply ➟ Passively increased governance rights for each JST ➟ Long-term holders are more closely aligned with the protocol's interests.
While most DeFi projects are still struggling with how tokens capture value, $JST has at least twice proven one thing with real money:
・The real returns generated by the protocol can flow back to the token in a stable and transparent manner.
The next question is simply about scale: whether TVL can continue to expand, how far USDD can go across multiple chains, and whether the burning mechanism can be sustained in the long term—time will tell.
But for now, it appears to be a proven and viable path.
@justinsuntron #TRONEcoStar