What could affect the price of INJ?
Injective’s price is currently caught between two forces: its deflationary token model, which reduces supply and supports price, and ongoing regulatory uncertainty that could impact investor confidence.
- EVM Mainnet Launch – Expected to increase developer activity and cross-chain liquidity, which is positive for the price.
- Staked INJ ETF Filing – Could bring institutional investors but faces scrutiny from regulators, creating mixed signals.
- Burn Rate Acceleration – The project is buying back and burning a large portion of fees, reducing supply and supporting price growth.
Deep Dive
1. EVM Mainnet & Cross-Chain Growth (Positive Outlook)
What happened: In August 2025, Injective upgraded to support the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) through its Ethernia upgrade. This means developers who build on Ethereum can now create decentralized apps (dApps) on Injective while still accessing liquidity from the Cosmos ecosystem. Over 1,200 developers tested this on the testnet, with the full mainnet launch expected by the end of 2025.
Why it matters: EVM compatibility can attract Ethereum-based projects and users, increasing transaction activity and fees, which in turn leads to more tokens being burned. For example, when Polygon adopted zkEVM, its total value locked (TVL) grew by 89% within three months (MDCryptoWorld).
2. Staked ETF Regulatory Battle (Uncertain Impact)
What happened: Canary Capital filed for a staked INJ exchange-traded fund (ETF) in Delaware in June 2025, which could open the door for institutional investors. However, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) warned in May 2025 that similar staking ETFs might violate securities laws (CoinMarketCap).
Why it matters: If approved, the ETF could bring significant new investment, similar to how Bitcoin ETFs boosted BTC prices by 72% within 60 days after approval. But if rejected, it could lead to sell-offs. INJ’s 3.7% price jump after the filing shows how sensitive the market is to regulatory news.
3. Hyper-Deflationary Tokenomics (Positive Outlook)
What happened: Injective burns 60% of its protocol fees through weekly auctions. So far in 2025, about 4.2 million INJ tokens (worth roughly $53 million) have been destroyed. With daily derivatives trading volume reaching $84 million in September 2025, the annualized burn rate could hit 8% of the total token supply.
Why it matters: This accelerated burning reduces supply, creating buying pressure especially during bull markets. This model is similar to Binance Coin’s (BNB) burn strategy, which helped BNB achieve 12x price gains during the 2021 bull run despite challenging market conditions.
Conclusion
Injective’s price outlook depends on whether EVM adoption grows quickly enough to outweigh regulatory challenges. The $12.50 support level, which held in July 2025, is crucial—falling below it could weaken bullish momentum. Keep an eye on the ETF decision expected in October 2025 and developer activity metrics after the mainnet launch.
The key question: Will Injective’s token burn rate be strong enough to offset any selling pressure caused by delays or rejection of the ETF?
What are people saying about INJ?
The Injective (INJ) community is divided between excitement over a potential breakout and frustration from recent price stagnation. Here’s what’s trending:
- Bullish technical outlook: A breakout from a symmetrical triangle pattern could push prices above $20.
- Bearish warnings: If support at $12.50 breaks, prices might fall further.
- ETF catalyst: The SEC’s upcoming decision on a staked INJ ETF could impact the market.
Deep Dive
1. @kylobtc: "Real growth, real usage" 🔥
"TVL keeps climbing, now pushing past $50M [...] The bull case for @injective just keeps getting stronger!"
– @kylobtc (89K followers · 210K impressions · 2025-09-22 08:33 UTC)
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What this means: This is positive for INJ because TVL (Total Value Locked) measures how much money is invested in Injective’s decentralized finance (DeFi) platform. A rising TVL shows more people are using the platform, which usually increases demand for the token.
2. @ali_charts: "New leg down confirmed" 🚨
"Injective $INJ has officially entered a new leg down!" (posted during a 12% weekly drop)
– @ali_charts (310K followers · 1.2M impressions · 2025-08-30 20:01 UTC)
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What this means: This is a bearish sign in the short term. The price broke below an important support level (an ascending triangle), which could lead to a drop to $8-$10 if the $12.50 support doesn’t hold.
3. CoinMarketCap Post: Mixed signals 📉📈
"RSI (1h/4h/1d): 62.65/65.96/56.37 [...] Fear Greed Index: 75/100" (contradictory momentum)
– Community metrics (posted 2025-08-08 14:56 UTC)
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What this means: The technical indicators are mixed. The RSI (Relative Strength Index) shows the token might be overbought in the short term (hourly charts), but daily and weekly charts still suggest there’s room to grow. The Fear Greed Index at 75 indicates optimism but also caution.
Conclusion
The outlook for Injective (INJ) is mixed. On one hand, strong fundamentals like growing TVL and the potential approval of an ETF support a bullish case. On the other hand, technical risks like failed breakout attempts and key support levels being tested create uncertainty. Traders are closely watching the $12.50 to $14.60 price range—holding above this zone could confirm a bullish trend, while falling below might trigger further losses. Also, keep an eye on the SEC’s decision expected by November 2025 regarding Canary Capital’s staked INJ ETF, as it could influence institutional interest and market sentiment.
What is the latest news about INJ?
Injective is at the forefront of decentralized finance (DeFi) innovation while facing regulatory challenges. Here are the latest updates:
- Pre-IPO Perpetuals Launch (October 1, 2025) – Global users can now trade synthetic private equity markets through Helix.
- Pineapple’s $100M Treasury Investment (September 5, 2025) – A New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)-listed company invests heavily in INJ to earn staking rewards.
- SEC Delays Approval of Staked INJ ETF (September 26, 2025) – Regulatory uncertainty continues for crypto-related investment funds.
Deep Dive
1. Pre-IPO Perpetuals Launch (October 1, 2025)
Overview: Injective has launched on-chain perpetual futures for pre-IPO companies such as OpenAI and SpaceX. This allows decentralized trading of synthetic equity derivatives with up to 5 times leverage. Unlike Robinhood’s tokenized private equity, these markets operate fully on the blockchain, are composable (meaning they can interact with other blockchain applications), and exclude users from the U.S., U.K., and Canada due to regulatory restrictions.
What this means: This is a positive development for INJ as it strengthens Injective’s role in connecting traditional finance (TradFi) with decentralized finance (DeFi) by expanding its real-world asset (RWA) offerings. However, regulatory scrutiny remains a concern, as seen with Lithuania investigating Robinhood’s similar product. (The Block)
2. Pineapple’s $100M Treasury Investment (September 5, 2025)
Overview: Pineapple Financial, a company listed on the NYSE, raised $100 million to build the first INJ treasury on the exchange. Their goal is to generate about 12% annual returns by staking INJ tokens. Major backers include Kraken, FalconX, and the Injective Foundation, showing strong institutional support.
What this means: This is generally positive for INJ’s long-term outlook. While locking up a large amount of INJ increases staking demand, it could also lead to price swings if Pineapple decides to adjust its holdings. (Yahoo Finance)
3. SEC Delays Approval of Staked INJ ETF (September 26, 2025)
Overview: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) postponed decisions on Canary’s staked INJ exchange-traded fund (ETF), along with similar funds for SUI and SEI tokens. This reflects the SEC’s cautious approach toward crypto investment products that offer yield.
What this means: This is a short-term negative for INJ’s price momentum, as delays in ETF approvals reduce speculative buying interest. However, Injective’s earlier listing of an exchange-traded product (ETP) in Europe through 21Shares shows that markets outside the U.S. remain open for growth. (The Block)
Conclusion
Injective is making strides in bridging traditional finance and decentralized finance with innovative products like pre-IPO derivatives and strong institutional partnerships such as Pineapple’s treasury investment. However, regulatory challenges in the U.S., including ETF delays, are limiting near-term optimism. The key question for 2026 is whether growing adoption of real-world assets on Injective can overcome ongoing SEC skepticism.
What is expected in the development of INJ?
Injective’s roadmap is focused on growing its decentralized finance (DeFi) infrastructure and making it easier for developers and users to participate. Key upcoming milestones include:
- EVM Mainnet Launch (Coming Soon) – Integrating Ethereum’s development environment to attract more developers.
- MultiVM Mainnet (Q4 2025) – Allowing apps to run across multiple blockchain platforms without rewriting code.
- iBuild Platform (2025) – An AI-powered tool that lets anyone create decentralized apps (dApps) using simple text commands.
- Monthly Community Burns – Regularly reducing the supply of INJ tokens by burning fees collected, helping increase token value.
Deep Dive
1. EVM Mainnet Launch (Coming Soon)
Overview:
The upcoming Ethernia upgrade will make Injective compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). This means developers who use Solidity (Ethereum’s programming language) can easily build and deploy apps on Injective while tapping into liquidity from the Cosmos ecosystem. Early public tests show smooth integration with MetaMask wallets and fast transaction finality.
What this means:
This is positive for INJ holders because it opens Injective to Ethereum’s large developer community (around 4 million Solidity developers). This could increase the total value locked (TVL) on Injective and boost cross-chain activity. However, Injective will face competition from other EVM-compatible blockchains like Avalanche.
2. MultiVM Mainnet (Q4 2025)
Overview:
MultiVM will allow developers to deploy decentralized apps across different blockchain environments—Ethereum (EVM), Solana (SVM), and CosmWasm—without needing to change their code. The public testnet launched in July 2025, with the full mainnet expected by the end of Q4 (CoinDesk).
What this means:
This feature positions Injective as a hub for multi-chain applications, which is a growing trend in blockchain. It could attract projects looking to operate across multiple blockchains without the risks of using bridges. The impact depends on how many developers adopt this technology.
3. iBuild Platform (2025)
Overview:
iBuild is an AI-driven platform that turns simple text instructions into working decentralized apps. At the Injective Summit, it demonstrated creating an options trading app in under five minutes from just a text description (MDCryptoWorld).
What this means:
This innovation could make building dApps accessible to people without coding skills, potentially speeding up the growth of the Injective ecosystem. However, since there is no public release date yet, there is some uncertainty about when it will be widely available.
4. Monthly Community Burns
Overview:
Injective has updated its Community Burn process to pool protocol fees monthly instead of weekly, resulting in larger token burns. In September 2025, 22,022 INJ tokens were burned, worth about $275,000, with full transparency through on-chain audits.
What this means:
Regularly burning tokens reduces the total supply, which can help increase the value of INJ over time, especially as more dApps use the platform. However, the amount burned depends on trading activity, so token economics are influenced by market conditions.
Conclusion
Injective’s roadmap combines technical upgrades (like EVM and MultiVM support) with community-focused economic strategies (like token burns) and user-friendly tools (like iBuild). The upcoming EVM launch and institutional interest, such as Pineapple Financial’s $100 million INJ treasury, highlight growing real-world adoption.
How will future regulations around tokenized real-world assets (RWAs) and staked ETFs affect INJ’s appeal to institutional investors?
What updates are there in the INJ code base?
Injective’s software is actively being improved with important upgrades and new features for decentralized finance (DeFi).
- Chain Upgrade v1.16.4 (September 19, 2025) – Performance improvements and instructions for network validators to update their systems.
- CLOB Architecture Documentation (7 days ago) – Detailed information added about the order book system for developers.
- EVM Compatibility through Ethernia (August 31, 2025) – Support added for running Ethereum smart contracts on Injective.
In-Depth Look
1. Chain Upgrade v1.16.4 (September 19, 2025)
What happened:
This update improved how the network performs and required validators (the computers that help run the network) to update their software by September 25, 2025.
Key updates include new versions of the main software components (injectived and peggo at v1.16.4), optimized Docker images (which help run the software more efficiently), and compatibility with the latest Go programming language version (1.23.9). Validators were given clear instructions to update without causing network interruptions.
Why it matters:
This upgrade is positive for Injective (INJ) because it makes the network more reliable and ready to handle more transactions. Validators need to update quickly to keep the network running smoothly.
(Source)
2. CLOB Architecture Documentation (7 days ago)
What happened:
The team updated the documentation explaining the Central Limit Order Book (CLOB), which is the system that manages buy and sell orders on the platform.
The new docs cover how Injective’s on-chain order book works for different types of trading like derivatives and spot markets, including how it handles risk and liquidations.
Why it matters:
This update is neutral for INJ’s price but very important for developers building DeFi applications on Injective. Clearer documentation can help attract more developers and grow the ecosystem.
(Source)
3. EVM Compatibility via Ethernia (August 31, 2025)
What happened:
Injective added compatibility with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) through the Ethernia upgrade. This means developers can now deploy Ethereum smart contracts written in Solidity directly on Injective.
This upgrade combines two technologies—WASM and EVM—on one blockchain, allowing access to liquidity from the Cosmos network and faster transaction finality (settlement).
Why it matters:
This is a strong positive for INJ because it connects Ethereum’s large developer community with Injective’s fast and scalable infrastructure, which could lead to more DeFi projects and activity on Injective.
(Source)
Conclusion
Injective is making steady progress by improving network scalability (v1.16.4), enhancing developer resources (CLOB docs), and enabling cross-chain compatibility (EVM support). These steps support its vision to become a leading platform for institutional DeFi.
How will the influx of Ethereum developers influence the growth and maturity of the INJ ecosystem?
Why did the price of INJ go up?
Injective (INJ) increased by 2.70% to $12.67 over the last 24 hours, outperforming the overall crypto market’s 2.23% rise. The main reasons behind this growth are:
- Launch of pre-IPO perpetual contracts – Onchain derivatives for private companies like OpenAI sparked excitement in decentralized finance (DeFi).
- Institutional treasury investments – Pineapple Financial’s $100 million INJ-focused treasury boosted demand for the token.
- Technical price recovery – INJ’s price stabilized above key support levels, showing positive momentum signals.
Deep Dive
1. Pre-IPO Derivatives Launch (Positive Outlook)
Overview: On October 1, Injective introduced decentralized perpetual markets for pre-IPO companies such as OpenAI and SpaceX through its Helix exchange. These contracts offer up to 5x leverage and are accessible worldwide. This move positions Injective as a leader in blending traditional finance with DeFi, setting it apart from centralized platforms like Robinhood, which offer tokenized equity products.
What this means: This launch expands Injective’s focus on real-world assets (RWA), which has already driven over $17 billion in trading volume for its iAssets in 2025. By tapping into demand for private market investments, Injective could increase its fee revenue. Since 60% of these fees are burned (removed from circulation), this helps reduce the supply of INJ tokens, potentially supporting its price.
What to watch: Keep an eye on how many users adopt these new markets on Helix and how regulators respond, especially since Lithuania recently reviewed Robinhood’s similar offerings.
2. Institutional Treasury Momentum (Positive Outlook)
Overview: Pineapple Financial (NYSE: PAPL) raised $100 million on September 5 to create a treasury denominated in INJ tokens. Their plan is to stake these tokens to earn about a 12% annual yield. This follows a $100 million private investment from the Injective Foundation into Pineapple, which now holds roughly 7% of INJ’s circulating supply.
What this means: Large-scale staking by institutions reduces the number of tokens being sold on the market, which can help support the price. It also validates INJ’s ability to generate yield, similar to how institutional buying supports Bitcoin ETFs. With INJ-based ETFs awaiting SEC approval, this creates an incentive for holders to keep their tokens, anticipating future demand.
3. Technical Price Recovery (Mixed Outlook)
Overview: INJ’s price has moved back above its 7-day simple moving average (SMA) at $11.97 and the Fibonacci 61.8% retracement level at $12.61. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) at 47.27 suggests there’s room for the price to rise. However, it still remains below the 30-day SMA at $13.17, which is an important resistance point.
What this means: The recent price increase fits with a broader rebound in altcoins (Altcoin Season Index: 68/100). But the trading volume dropped slightly by 1.4% to $86.5 million, which raises questions about how sustainable this rally is. If INJ closes above $13.17, it could signal a trend reversal. If not, the price might test the $12 support level again.
Conclusion
INJ’s recent gains are driven by strategic product launches and institutional treasury activity, supported by favorable technical conditions. While the focus on real-world assets strengthens the token’s fundamentals, traders should watch if trading volume confirms this breakout.
Key point to watch: Can INJ stay above $12.61 (Fibonacci support) and use this week’s pre-IPO trading momentum to push toward $13.50?