Why did the price of NEAR fall?

NEAR Protocol (NEAR) dropped 2.16% in the last 24 hours, closing at $2.16. This decline was steeper than the overall crypto market, which fell by 1.81%. The main reasons behind this drop include:

1. Weak technical signals – NEAR’s price broke important support levels, and its Relative Strength Index (RSI) showed it was oversold.
2. Altcoin selloff – Investors moved money from altcoins like NEAR into Bitcoin, as the Altcoin Season Index fell 66% over the past month.
3. Competition from other blockchains – BNB Chain’s user base of 58.9 million outpaced NEAR’s ecosystem growth.

Deep Dive

1. Technical Breakdown (Bearish Impact)

NEAR’s price fell below key support levels, including its 30-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) at $2.78 and the Fibonacci retracement level at $2.96. The RSI, a tool that measures if an asset is overbought or oversold, dropped to 26.64, indicating NEAR was heavily oversold—the lowest since May 2025. However, this did not lead to a price rebound as might be expected.

What this means:

• Selling pressure remained strong despite the oversold condition.
• The MACD indicator, which shows momentum, pointed to accelerating downward momentum.
• If NEAR’s price falls below $2.15, the next support level to watch is $2.09.

Key point to watch: NEAR needs to close above $2.30 consistently to signal a potential recovery and avoid further decline.

2. Altcoin Liquidation Cycle (Mixed Impact)

The Altcoin Season Index, which measures how well altcoins are performing compared to Bitcoin, dropped sharply to 26 out of 100, down 66% from last month. This reflects a shift in investor preference toward Bitcoin, whose market dominance rose to nearly 59%.

What this means:

• Investors are reducing their exposure to mid-sized altcoins like NEAR amid broader market uncertainty.
• NEAR’s trading volume fell by 3.7% to $273 million over 24 hours, showing weak buying interest despite the price drop.

3. Ecosystem Growth vs. Market Realities (Neutral Impact)

NEAR has made strides in its ecosystem, including hiring AI experts and processing $1.8 billion in Intents swaps (a type of transaction). However, these developments have not been enough to outpace competitors.

What this means:

• BNB Chain leads with 58.9 million monthly active users, compared to NEAR’s 50.3 million.
• Other coins like Zcash and Litecoin gained momentum recently, with weekly gains of 382% and 13%, respectively.
• The market currently favors coins with strong narratives over those focused on infrastructure improvements.

Conclusion

NEAR’s recent price drop is mainly due to technical weaknesses and a broad selloff in altcoins, despite progress in AI and transaction volumes. The $2.15 price level is now a critical support point.

Key watch: Whether NEAR Intents’ daily volume of $21.8 million (as of October 30) can help boost buying interest, especially as the Fear & Greed Index approaches its lowest levels of the year.

What could affect the price of NEAR?

NEAR is balancing between growth driven by artificial intelligence (AI) and uncertain feelings about altcoins (alternative cryptocurrencies).

1. AI Leadership Drive – New leaders and privacy-focused AI products could boost adoption
2. Cross-Chain Activity – Over $2 billion in transactions through NEAR Intents shows growing ecosystem use
3. Staking Changes – A proposed cut in inflation from 5% to 2.5% might reduce selling pressure if approved

In-Depth Look

1. AI Product Development (Positive Outlook)

Summary: On October 15, NEAR brought in new leadership focused on AI, including former executives from Bloomberg and dYdX, to speed up the creation of privacy-focused AI tools. The "Shade Agent" sandbox for verifiable AI agents launched on September 30, and over 120,000 users interacted with NEAR’s AI tools in the third quarter.

Why it matters: If NEAR successfully integrates AI, it could become the go-to AI platform within Web3 (the decentralized internet), attracting developers away from centralized platforms. For example, Fetch.ai (FET) saw a 290% price increase in three months after promoting its AI capabilities in 2024. Keep an eye on user growth in AI apps during the fourth quarter (NEAR Foundation).

2. Cross-Chain Liquidity Growth (Mixed Signals)

Summary: NEAR Intents, a tool that allows transactions across different blockchains, handled $1.84 billion in swaps across 20 blockchains as of October 9. StableFlow, launched on October 5, enables stablecoin transfers with very low fees (0.01%) and has moved $1 million so far. However, NEAR faces stiff competition from BNB Chain, which has 58.9 million users compared to NEAR’s 50.3 million (data from October 13).

Why it matters: Cross-chain tools like NEAR Intents help NEAR stay relevant but also expose it to competition for liquidity (the availability of funds). The number of swaps dropped by nearly 25% in one week (from 41,000 to 31,000), showing some volatility. Watch the ratio of total value locked (TVL) between Intents and opBNB (BNB Chain’s solution) to see which platform gains dominance.

3. Inflation Reform Vote (Potential Upside and Downside)

Summary: NEAR’s community is voting on a proposal to cut annual inflation from 5% to 2.5%. This change would reduce staking rewards from about 9% to 4.5%. Currently, validators have 550 million NEAR tokens staked, worth roughly $1.18 billion. How validators respond could affect the price.

Why it matters: If the proposal passes, lower rewards might reduce the selling pressure from stakers cashing out, but it could also discourage some validators from participating. Similar changes in Ethereum’s token economics took 6 to 12 months to significantly affect price.

Conclusion

NEAR’s focus on AI and growing cross-chain activity provide strong reasons for optimism. However, broader market uncertainty (the Fear & Greed Index is at 28, indicating caution) and validator reactions add short-term risk. Watch if NEAR Intents can maintain transaction volumes above $500 million per month in the fourth quarter to confirm its role in simplifying blockchain interactions.

What are people saying about NEAR?

NEAR Protocol is generating buzz with its plans for cross-chain technology and discussions about inflation. Here’s a quick summary:

1. Integration with AI through Allora is creating excitement about smarter commerce
2. NEAR Intents has handled over $570 million in swaps, showing growing use
3. Traders are watching a key price level around $3.40 for a potential breakout
4. Bitwise’s staking ETP on the Xetra exchange is drawing attention from institutional investors
5. The community is voting to reduce token inflation from 5% to 2.5%

In-Depth Look

1. Allora AI Integration Boosts NEAR’s Capabilities

@NiphermeDave shared that NEAR’s Shade Agent infrastructure now uses predictive AI intelligence. This upgrade improves NEAR’s ability to automate tasks across different blockchains, supporting its goal to be the “execution layer for the AI economy” (source). In simpler terms, NEAR is becoming smarter and more efficient at handling complex operations involving multiple blockchain networks.

2. NEAR Intents Sees Big Growth in Swap Volume

NEAR Protocol announced that NEAR Intents has processed over 1.2 million swaps involving more than 100 different assets, including integration with the Sui blockchain. This means NEAR is becoming a central place where users can easily exchange digital assets across different blockchains. With $21.8 million in swaps daily, this reduces the need to sell assets outside the NEAR ecosystem, which can help stabilize the token’s value.

3. Traders Watch $3.40 Price Level Closely

Crypto analyst @cryptoking_nl noted that NEAR’s price faced resistance at $3.50 but is building momentum for another attempt. If NEAR fails to break through the $3.40 to $3.50 range, it might drop back to around $2.70. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) at 61.64 indicates a balanced market, meaning neither buyers nor sellers are dominating right now.

4. Community Votes on Reducing Inflation

@NEARWEEK reported that validators are voting on a proposal to cut the annual token inflation rate from 5% to 2.5%. If approved (requiring two-thirds majority), staking rewards would decrease from about 9% to 4.5%. This could encourage people to hold NEAR tokens longer but might also reduce the number of validators securing the network.

Conclusion

Overall, the outlook for NEAR Protocol is positive when it comes to ecosystem growth, especially with advancements in cross-chain technology and AI integration. However, price movements remain cautious due to broader market factors and ongoing inflation debates. Keep an eye on the inflation vote results expected in late October. A “yes” vote could reduce token supply and boost prices, while a “no” might lead to concerns about staking withdrawals.

What is the latest news about NEAR?

NEAR Protocol is focusing on AI and privacy with new leadership and ecosystem updates. Here’s what’s new:

1. Leadership Changes to Boost AI (October 15, 2025) – New executives appointed to lead privacy-focused AI projects.
2. idOS Privacy Features Added (October 12, 2025) – Users can now create NEAR wallets with control over their data across different blockchains.
3. NEAR Intents Swap Volume Jumps (October 9, 2025) – Over $800 million in swaps processed, helped by privacy features from Zcash.

In-Depth Look

1. Leadership Changes to Boost AI (October 15, 2025)

Summary:
The NEAR Foundation has reorganized its leadership to focus more on AI development. George Zeng, formerly with Bloomberg, is now Chief Product Officer, and Matt Kummell, formerly with DCG, is Chief Business Officer. Their goal is to build AI tools that protect user privacy and offer trustworthy AI services.

Why it matters:
This move shows NEAR’s commitment to becoming a leader in AI-powered blockchain solutions. Bringing in experts from traditional finance and crypto industries could help NEAR stand out by emphasizing privacy in AI applications. (Binance)

2. idOS Privacy Features Added (October 12, 2025)

Summary:
NEAR has partnered with idOS, a decentralized identity system, allowing users to create NEAR wallets while controlling which apps can access their personal data across multiple blockchains.

Why it matters:
This gives users more privacy and control, especially important for decentralized finance (DeFi) and AI apps that handle sensitive information. It also strengthens NEAR’s position in creating identity solutions that work across different blockchain networks. (X (ZoroWeb3))

3. NEAR Intents Swap Volume Jumps (October 9, 2025)

Summary:
NEAR Intents, a protocol that lets users swap cryptocurrencies across different blockchains, processed over $800 million in swaps in 30 days. This growth was boosted by Zcash’s Zashi wallet, which uses NEAR Intents for private cross-chain swaps like Bitcoin to shielded Zcash.

Why it matters:
There’s growing demand for privacy-focused crypto swaps, and NEAR’s technology is meeting that need. If this trend continues, NEAR could become a key platform for secure, private transactions between different blockchains. (Yahoo Finance)

Conclusion

NEAR Protocol is focusing heavily on AI governance, privacy-focused swaps, and cross-chain identity solutions. These areas are becoming increasingly important as blockchain technology intersects with AI and gains interest from institutions. The big question is whether these efforts will lead to steady growth for NEAR’s network despite the uncertain market.

What is expected in the development of NEAR?

NEAR Protocol is making progress with these key updates:

1. Meta Pool Node Studio Cohort 2 (October 24, 2025) – A program to onboard new validators with 60 available spots and 2.52 million $NEAR in rewards.
2. AI-Driven DAO Governance (Q4 2025) – Expanding the use of AI to help decentralized organizations make decisions more efficiently.
3. NEAR Intents Cross-Chain Expansion (2025) – Planning to connect with over 30 different blockchain networks using SwapKit technology.

In-Depth Look

1. Meta Pool Node Studio Cohort 2 (October 24, 2025)

What’s happening:
Meta Pool is launching its second Node Studio cohort to make it easier for new validators to join the NEAR network. Validators help keep the network secure and running smoothly. This program offers technical training and rewards totaling 2.52 million $NEAR over one year (TTT_INSIGHTS, Oct 2, 2025). Applications close on October 24, 2025.

Why it matters:
More validators mean a stronger, more decentralized network, which builds trust—especially for larger investors and institutions. However, if the rewards don’t cover the costs of running a validator, some participants might drop out.

2. AI-Driven DAO Governance (Q4 2025)

What’s happening:
NEAR’s House of Stake project is testing AI-powered delegates that can automate voting and manage resources within decentralized organizations (DAOs). This builds on earlier work with the Meta Pool AI Copilot (TTT_INSIGHTS, Oct 8, 2025).

Why it matters:
Using AI could reduce human bias and speed up decision-making in DAOs, which often rely on community votes. The success of this depends on how transparent and understandable the AI’s decisions are to users.

3. NEAR Intents Cross-Chain Expansion (2025)

What’s happening:
NEAR Intents is a system that allows users to swap assets across different blockchains. It recently added support for TRON and Sui, reaching a total swap volume of $1.8 billion. The goal is to connect with more than 30 blockchains by the end of 2025 (TTT_INSIGHTS, Oct 8, 2025).

Why it matters:
Connecting with many blockchains can bring more users and liquidity to NEAR, making it easier to move assets between networks like Cardano or Zcash. However, NEAR faces competition from other cross-chain platforms like LayerZero and Wormhole.

Conclusion

NEAR Protocol is focusing on growing its validator network, introducing AI to improve governance, and expanding cross-chain capabilities. These efforts aim to make NEAR more scalable and user-friendly. The big question is whether NEAR’s approach to connecting different blockchains will help it stand out against major players like Ethereum.

What updates are there in the NEAR code base?

NEAR Protocol’s latest software updates bring big improvements in scalability and developer tools.

1. Resharding V3 & Shard Layouts (March 2025) – Increased network capacity with new shard designs and better cross-shard communication.
2. Cross-Shard Bandwidth Scheduler (March 2025) – Smarter handling of transactions across shards to boost speed and efficiency.
3. Stateless Validation & Ethereum Compatibility (May 2025) – Easier participation for validators and smoother integration with Ethereum apps.

Deep Dive

1. Resharding V3 & Shard Layouts (March 2025)

What happened: NEAR upgraded its network by adding two new shards, increasing from 6 to 8, which helps the system handle more transactions at once. The update also changed how the network tracks shards, making it easier to scale in the future. During this upgrade, hardware requirements temporarily increased to 64GB RAM to support the more demanding processes.

Why it matters: This upgrade means NEAR can process many more transactions per second, potentially reaching millions. It also makes network updates smoother and provides a stronger base for developers building decentralized apps (dApps).
(Source)

2. Cross-Shard Bandwidth Scheduler (March 2025)

What happened: NEAR introduced a new system to better manage transactions that involve multiple shards. This scheduler prioritizes important transactions and improves how resources are used. It also added parallel transaction validation, which speeds up processing by handling signatures ahead of time.

Why it matters: This upgrade improves the user experience for apps that operate across different parts of the network, like decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms. While validators need to update their nodes, users will notice faster transaction finality for complex operations.
(Source)

3. Stateless Validation & Ethereum Compatibility (May 2025)

What happened: NEAR introduced stateless validation, allowing validators to participate without storing the entire blockchain history. It also enhanced compatibility with Ethereum, making it easier for Ethereum developers and users to work with NEAR. Features like Chain Signatures enable cross-chain interactions from a single account, and integration with MetaMask simplifies onboarding for Ethereum users.

Why it matters: These changes lower the barrier for validators, reducing costs and encouraging a more decentralized network. They also attract Ethereum developers, expanding NEAR’s ecosystem and making it easier to build cross-chain applications.
(Source)

Conclusion

NEAR Protocol’s recent updates focus on making the network faster, more interoperable, and easier for developers to use. With improvements like Resharding V3 and Ethereum compatibility, NEAR is positioning itself as a strong platform for high-performance, cross-chain applications. The big question is how these upgrades will help NEAR compete with other popular platforms like Solana and Polygon.