Perp DEX Lighter launches native token $LIT, receive an immediate airdrop for the 2025 points season

Ethereum L2 Decentralized Perpetual Contract Exchange (Perp DEX) Lighter officially announces the launch of its native token, the “Lighter Infrastructure Token” (LIT).

The structure of the LIT token is designed to channel all value from Lighter’s core DEX and future products to LIT holders. Revenue (tracked on-chain in real-time) will be allocated to ecosystem growth and market-condition-dependent buybacks. The team states, “We are long-term builders aiming to maximize the value created over the long term.” The token distribution plan allocates 50% to the ecosystem and the remaining 50% to the team and investors (the latter with a one-year cliff and three-year linear vesting).
The launch of this token coincides with Lighter’s introduction of spot trading functionality, starting with ETH deposits. It positions itself as a scalable, non-custodial order book protocol in the competitive DeFi trading space, with LIT serving as a key incentive mechanism connecting traditional finance (TradFi) and decentralized finance (DeFi), vying for market share in the highly competitive perpetual futures trading platform sector.
Lighter is an Ethereum Layer 2 protocol focused on zero-knowledge rollups (ZK-rollups) to enable verifiable transactions. Its tokens are issued directly by its US-based C-Corp entity. The company raised $68 million at a $1.5 billion valuation in November, with a strong lineup of investors including Founders Fund, Ribbit Capital, Haun Ventures, and Robinhood. In the announcement, Lighter specifically highlighted strategic partners like Robinhood and Coinbase, emphasizing alignment of interests among traders, institutions, developers, and investors.
Airdrop FDV 25% Tokens
To reward early adopters, Lighter will immediately airdrop tokens equivalent to 25% of the fully diluted valuation (FDV) (FDV). These tokens come from the 12.5 million points accumulated during its 2025 points season. This airdrop accounts for 25% of the total supply and will be distributed directly to eligible Lighter wallets without claiming, bypassing previously cleared “whale” accounts and fake trading activities. On-chain data shows that 250 million LIT tokens have been transferred for distribution.
Initially, LIT was only listed on Lighter’s spot market, with an opening price around $2.4 to $2.5. Based on an estimated total supply of 1 billion tokens, this implies a fully diluted valuation (FDV) of approximately $2.5 billion.
The airdrop was directly distributed to users’ internal wallets or authorized addresses, quickly sparking trading activity. Distribution amounts ranged from hundreds to thousands of tokens. One trader received 3,338 LIT (worth over $8,000 at launch price) with 166.9 points, but also noted potential selling pressure. Another user claimed 1,507 LIT (about $3,700), marking their second major profit this month.
Community reactions on X (Twitter) were mixed; some chose to quickly cash out amid a bearish outlook, while others planned to hold or stake for long-term returns. Hours before the official launch, warnings appeared on platforms like Uniswap about counterfeit LIT tokens, with scammers deploying fake tokens.
LIT’s uses include accessing risk-adjusted financial products, layered staking of decentralized infrastructure, and serving as a fee token for market data verification. The team envisions LIT as a driver of verifiable data flow between TradFi and DeFi, incentivized through staking mechanisms to promote transparency and efficiency.
This launch coincides with increased momentum in DeFi, with perpetual DEXs capturing more market share. However, Lighter has recently addressed “sybil attacks” within its points system, highlighting challenges in fair distribution. As trading channels expand, analysts will observe whether LIT can maintain value growth amid volatility. The protocol’s US background may help it develop steadily within the post-election pro-cryptocurrency regulatory environment.
The team and investors’ tokens follow a structured vesting schedule: one-year lock-up followed by three years of linear vesting, aiming to align long-term incentives and reduce immediate sell pressure. In presale trading on platforms like Binance, OKX, and MEXC, LIT’s price was approximately $3.48, implying an FDV of about $3.48 billion, although actual circulating supply before TGE was zero. Analysts predict volatility after the airdrop unlock, but if trading volume and user activity continue to grow, the price could rise to $5-6, comparable to mature DeFi protocols.