The crypto market's need for stability is growing increasingly urgent. A crucial vote ongoing on the liquid staking protocol Ether.fi is becoming a litmus test for the DeFi ecosystem's ability to "save itself." The DAO community has proposed using $50 million of its treasury surplus to trigger a buyback mechanism should the ETHFI token fall below $3. As of now, a snapshot shows 100% approval, and voting will close on November 4th. This move is not only about price stabilization but also touches upon multiple issues such as decentralized governance, capital mobilization, and market confidence.
Conditions for launching the $50 million market stabilization plan
The Ether.fi community has proposed using accumulated profits from protocol staking and operations to buy back and burn ETHFI. The trigger threshold is quite clear: the buyback will be executed in batches when the market price falls below $3. Given the current price range of $0.96 to $1.03, the market believes this funding will form a clear price support level. This is not the first such move; if the proposal passes, it will be Ether.fi's third round of buybacks, demonstrating that the protocol has established a coherent market capitalization management framework. 
DAO Consensus and On-Chain Transparency
This vote was conducted entirely through the DAO process, allowing all members with governance authority to participate in the decision-making. Snapshot data as of the time of writing shows a 100% approval rate, reflecting a high level of community consensus on the stablecoin's price. Ether.fi also promises that all buyback transactions will be completed on-chain and disclosed in real-time through the Dune Analytics dashboard. The protocol team emphasized:
"We will put the amount, time, and transaction hash of each repurchase on the blockchain to ensure that anyone can track it."
This trustless transparency is considered the key to the greater credibility of decentralized finance compared to traditional market buybacks.
Market Impact: Supply and Demand Adjustment and Confidence Effect
Buybacks directly reduce circulating supply, which theoretically helps to reduce selling pressure and support prices. Similar tactics have been used in protocols like Aave DAO in the past, and industry examples show that if executed quickly enough, they can indeed stabilize prices in the short term. At the same time, the protocol's willingness to utilize its self-generated surplus sends a long-term bullish signal to the market. However, whether $50 million is sufficient to build a solid defense in extreme market conditions remains to be seen; if selling pressure continues to increase, the subsequent strategy after the buyback will be the next challenge.
The voting results are about to be revealed. Regardless of whether you're in favor or against, this buyback debate has demonstrated the decisiveness of DAOs in fund allocation. For Ether.fi, the $50 million is not just a figure for market stabilization, but also a stress test of whether decentralized governance can maintain its resilience in the face of storms. The next chapter of the DeFi world is being written by every vote cast by its participants.
