Uniswap genomför massiv förbränning av 100 miljoner UNI: Token blir en deflationär tillgång

Uniswap, the leading decentralized exchange (DEX) on Ethereum, has officially carried out one of the largest token burns in DeFi history. According to data provided by the user, Uniswap's treasury transferred 100 million UNI to a burn address, as confirmed by the transaction on the Arkham Intelligence blockchain explorer at 0x1a9C8182C09F50C8318d769245beA52c32BE35BC. This operation, valued at approximately $592-596 million at the time of execution, is part of the approved "UNIfication" proposal, which activates the token burn mechanism from protocol fees.

The transaction occurred at 4:30 AM UTC on December 28, 2025, reducing the circulating supply of UNI to approximately 730 million units from the initial 1 billion.

This led to a 5.4% increase in UNI's price immediately after the event, with the token's market capitalization at $4.3 billion. The burn was initiated following overwhelming support for the proposal in the Uniswap Governance community vote, where over 125 million votes approved the changes, against only 742.

What is "UNIfication" and How Does It Change UNI?

The "UNIfication" proposal, initiated by Uniswap founder Hayden Adams, transforms UNI from a pure governance token into a value-accruing asset. Key changes include:

• A portion of swap fees (0.05% for Uniswap v2 and flexible rates for v3) is now directed to the protocol instead of being fully distributed to liquidity providers (LPs). With Uniswap's annual revenue exceeding $600 million, this creates a direct link between protocol revenues and UNI.
• This is equivalent to an estimate of what could have been burned if the fee switch had been activated from the token's launch. The tokens were transferred to a "dead" address (burn address), where they are permanently removed from circulation.
• Accumulated fees are stored in a special contract. UNI holders can burn their tokens to receive a proportional share of these assets (e.g., in the form of a basket of altcoins). This incentivizes voluntary burning, avoiding legal risks associated with direct dividend distribution.

These changes make UNI a deflationary asset, similar to tokens of centralized exchanges (CEXs), such as BNB from Binance, where fees are used for burning. Analysts note that this could revalue UNI, as the market will now account for the protocol's real revenue of $600 million per year.

Historically, Uniswap already had burn mechanisms, but they were limited. For example, in the past, fees were partially burned, but "UNIfication" makes this systematic and tied to revenues.

Why Do Projects Burn Tokens?

Token burning is not a random event but a strategic tool in tokenomics, used in thousands of projects from Ethereum to meme-coins like SHIB. Based on source analysis, here are more detailed reasons why projects "burn money" (i.e., permanently remove tokens from circulation):

Creating Scarcity and Price Growth

The primary goal is to reduce supply to boost demand for the remaining tokens. If demand is stable or growing, the price increases due to a "deflationary effect." For example, Binance burns BNB quarterly, which has helped the token grow hundreds of times. In Uniswap's case, this equates to removing 10% of the supply, potentially adding $0.5-1 to the token price in the medium term.

Controlling Inflation and Stabilization

Many tokens have inflationary models (e.g., through staking rewards or minting). Burning counters this, preventing devaluation. In Ethereum post-The Merge, burning exceeds issuance during high activity periods, making ETH deflationary. For UNI, this stabilizes price in the volatile DeFi market.

Boosting Investor Confidence and Signaling Long-Term Commitment

Burning demonstrates that the team is focused on sustainability rather than quick "dumps" of tokens. This builds investor trust, especially in projects with large premine allocations. In cases like Terra (pre-collapse) or modern DAOs, regular burning signals a healthy economy.

Motivating the Community and Ecosystem

Mechanisms like TokenJar incentivize holders to burn tokens for rewards, increasing participation. It can also be part of security (e.g., proof-of-burn for consensus) or marketing – burn events attract attention, as in SHIB, where billions of tokens are burned for hype.

Regulatory and Financial Advantages

Burning avoids regulatory issues (e.g., with the SEC) since it doesn't distribute profits like dividends. It also optimizes token distribution, such as removing unused or erroneously minted tokens. In large projects, this supports network security by reducing attack risks from excess supply.

However, burning is not a panacea: if the project lacks real utility, the price won't rise. Risks include manipulation (e.g., artificial pumping before burning) or "dead" tokens if the community is inactive.

Impact on the DeFi Market

This burn positions Uniswap as a pioneer in "real value accrual" in DeFi, where tokens are not just for governance but for capturing profits. Analysts compare UNI to BNB or CRO, forecasting a market cap of $10+ billion by 2027 if fees grow.

In summary, burning is a tool for evolving crypto economics, and Uniswap demonstrates how DeFi can compete with CEXs. If you're a UNI holder, this is a positive sign for long-term growth. Stay tuned for updates in Uniswap governance for next steps.