Spark Protocol announces first-quarter 2026 net profit of $3.46 million and launches SPK token buyback Gate News reports, April 27 — Spark Protocol released its Q1 2026 financial report on April 27, showing total protocol returns of $31.5 million ( down 31% ) quarter-over-quarter, protocol net returns of $6.91 million ( down 30% ) quarter-over-quarter. The protocol's net earnings reached $3.46 million ( down 47% ) quarter-over-quarter, while at the same time, the protocol treasury reached $46.1 million ( up 5.7% ) quarter-over-quarter. The protocol launched the SPK token buyback program, investing $986,000 USD for open market purchases. The revenue structure in Q1 saw significant changes, with reward distribution becoming the largest source of net returns, reaching $3.31 million, surpassing Spark Liquidity Layer (SLL)'s net profit for the first time. SLL, with an average capital investment of $1.93 billion USD, achieved an average annualized return of 5.8%. SparkLend continues to support institutional lending, with USDT savings treasury steadily growing. Institutional lending products had deployed $150 million in funds by the end of the quarter, and governance has approved a cap of $1 billion in funds. The report notes that unfavorable DeFi lending market conditions narrowed SLL's spread, despite the protocol's distribution business achieving significant growth. In a challenging market environment, USDS, as a scalable, savings-based return mechanism, has expanded its distribution channels across multiple chains and various stablecoin types.