Near Protocol Jumps 23% Amid Fresh $350M Funding

The NEAR token, which powers the eponymous blockchain network, has risen almost 23% over the past 24 hours. 

The bullish action now puts the 16th-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization at just over $19, according to CoinMarketCap. This is just 6.5% from NEAR’s all-time high of $20.42 set in January. 

Launched in May 2020, Near Protocol emerged to solve many scalability bottlenecks that permeate the crypto space. 

It boasts high speeds and low costs through various features, including a proof-of-stake (PoS) consensus mechanism, a scaling technology called “sharding,” and a unique block-producing implementation that achieves finality swifter than some competitors. 

Finality is a technical term in the crypto space that refers to when a transaction can no longer be changed or canceled.    

What’s pumping Near?

Today’s jump comes on the heels of a fresh $350 million investment in Near, including funding from FTX Ventures, Dragonfly Capital, and others. The new money will be put to work expanding the ecosystem. Near also raised $150 million back in January.

After that, Barry Silbert, the founder of Digital Coin Group, announced that the Group’s third-largest crypto holding after Bitcoin and Ethereum was the Near token. 

Finally, rumors have swirled that Near will soon launch a native stablecoin. Speculation emerged after a recent newsletter from crypto swing trader Zoran Cole. He outlined how USN, the name of the stablecoin, would “offer an extremely attractive ~20% APR” and kick off a surge of DeFi activity.

Scant evidence exists beyond Cole’s claims and some details pulled from Ref Finance’s testnet. The Near-based DeFi project shows a stablecoin called USN within the platform’s decentralized exchange (DEX).   

Decrypt has yet to receive a response from Near Protocol about the veracity of these rumors. 

Regardless, the crypto Twitterati have already rallied around the prospects of a new (and potentially lucrative) opportunity which has likely affected the price of Near today.