PONS rose 13% over the past day as protocol-backed buying, bullish crypto sentiment and improving activity supported demand. The protocol generated roughly $19.64 million in earnings so far in September and allocated $13.82 million to token buybacks, which remove tokens from the market and can tighten supply when demand is rising. Fees increased from $2.49 million on Sept. 16 to $2.95 million at press time, according to DeFiLlama. Derivatives data showed open interest up by double digits to $188.57 million and a significantly positive funding rate of 0.0201%, indicating expanded exposure and a preference for long positions. Spot netflow shifted from $3.94 million during the previous two-day sell-off to negative $47,890, suggesting gradual buying had resumed but remained limited. Whale Retail Delta stayed positive at 0.101%, although it fell from 0.349% on Sept. 17, pointing to increased retail participation while whales remained dominant. The outlook stayed bullish on buybacks, rising fees and leveraged positioning, but its durability could depend on stronger spot buying as whale dominance declines.