An LCD backlight inverter has a buck switch for determining power supply to a DC/AC converter for converting voltage, the buck switch being connected between a supply voltage input terminal and the DC/AC converter. An overvoltage protection circuit is connected to an input terminal of said DC/AC converter for dividing voltage while providing a current path at the time of the initial drive. A first comparing block compares the dimension of a feedback signal with the dimension of a first reference voltage, the feedback signal representing the voltage according to an on/off status of the backlight. A second comparing block compares the dimension of the voltage divided in the overvoltage protection circuit with the dimension of a second reference voltage. A switching controlling block receives comparison signals from the first and second comparing blocks for controlling an on/off status of the buck switch according to the comparison signals.