The native token of the NEAR Protocol increased by at least 83% over a 30-day period, with some measurements showing gains up to 172% between September and October 2026. This growth returned the asset to the top 20 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, which peaked at approximately $7.2 billion.
The launch of the Bitwise NRR spot ETF on September 29, 2026, acted as a primary driver, attracting nearly $58 million in inflows during its first week. Additionally, the NEAR Intents cross-chain trading system reached a cumulative volume in the range of $31-33 billion across more than 30 chains, despite a $3.8 million exploit in early October 2026.
The community is currently debating a governance proposal to reduce the maximum annual token issuance from 2.5% to 1.6% over two years. This change aims to prevent the creation of roughly 66 million tokens over six years, valued at about $329 million at late-September prices. Consequently, staking yields are expected to decline from approximately 5.4% to 3.5%.
Despite the recent rally, the token price remains well below its all-time high of approximately $20 recorded in January 2022. As of early October 2026, the asset was trading between $4.70 and $5.50. Technical indicators, specifically the Relative Strength Index, have occasionally signaled overbought conditions by exceeding 70-80.
