Crypto projects spent roughly $638 million on token buybacks between January and late August 2026, a record up from $545 million over the same stretch of 2025. Hyperliquid accounted for about $370 million and Pump.fun for roughly $200 million, together representing nearly 90% of the total. SEC staff clarified on September 25 that functional networks can announce buybacks of non-security tokens without triggering the Howey test, provided the token itself falls outside securities law and the network has reached functionality. The pending Regulation Crypto Assets proposal would allow projects to raise up to $5 million over four years under a startup exemption and up to $75 million every 12 months under a larger exemption with disclosure requirements. Pump.fun and Hyperliquid fee flows alone suggest industry buybacks could exceed $1 billion annually at current run rates.
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