NEAR Protocol soars 60%: Is a Bull Run underway?

Falling wedge and short squeeze: The winning combination

Near Protocol is currently trading in a range between $2.38 and $2.40, posting a spectacular surge over the last 24 hours. This rally is no coincidence. It results from the perfect combination of an explosive technical setup and rapidly accelerating fundamentals. The price quietly validated a breakout from a falling wedge, one of the most bullish chart patterns in technical analysis. This breakout caught many bearish traders off guard. The result is a massive short squeeze that propelled the price well beyond the key resistance of $1.72.

Millions of dollars in short positions were liquidated within hours, forcing massive buybacks that fueled the bullish momentum. This type of self sustaining movement is characteristic of technical breakouts on altcoins with high open interest. Data from CoinGlass confirms that short liquidations accounted for the majority of volume in the early hours of the move. The $1.75 to $1.90 resistance zone, which had been blocking buyers for several weeks, has now turned into a fundamental technical support. As long as the price remains above this area, the structure remains resolutely bullish.

The artificial intelligence narrative has acted as a decisive complementary catalyst. The recent exceptional earnings from American tech giants have reignited investor interest in AI crypto tokens. NEAR Protocol, which positions its blockchain as the benchmark infrastructure for on-chain autonomous agents, directly benefits from this renewed thematic interest. Public endorsements from influential figures in the ecosystem have amplified this buying pressure. The convergence of a technical catalyst and a fundamental narrative creates the perfect conditions for a sustained directional move.

The $1.90 resistance turns into support: What do the technicals say?

The technical analysis of NEAR confirms the strength of this structural reversal. The $1.75 to $1.90 zone has transformed into a critical support after being breached with conviction and volume. This polarity shift is one of the most reliable signals in the crypto trading arsenal. The RSI is approaching the overbought territory on the daily timeframe, confirming the strength of the rally without yet signaling an imminent reversal. A slight consolidation would help clear out the excess buying pressure before a new bullish impulse.

The MACD displays growing histograms in positive territory, confirming that buyers maintain total control of the market. The Bollinger Bands are expanding upwards, signaling an ongoing bullish expansion that has not yet reached its exhaustion point. Fibonacci levels place successive resistances at $2.50, $2.80, and $3.20 as mandatory milestones toward a return to previous highs. The CVD shows a growing positive delta, confirming buyer dominance over net flows. This technical structure is one of the most convincing observed on a mid-cap altcoin this quarter.

In the bearish scenario, profit taking would bring the price back to test the new $1.90 support before any further impulse. This retracement would be considered healthy and constructive as it would flush out the excess leverage accumulated during the short squeeze. Traders engaged in swing trading will use this pullback as a tactical entry point to strengthen their positions. Monitoring the volume during this support test will be crucial to validate or invalidate the strength of the reversal. A bounce off $1.90 with increasing volume would definitively confirm the new bullish structure.

NEAR Protocol and AI: A game changing fundamental

The fundamentals of NEAR Protocol fully justify this renewed institutional interest. The network has positioned itself as the benchmark infrastructure for developing on-chain autonomous agents powered by artificial intelligence. This AI and blockchain narrative is currently the most powerful in the Web3 ecosystem, driven by significant institutional capital flows. NEAR enjoys a superior technical architecture for this use case featuring high processing speeds, negligible fees, and compatibility with the complex smart contracts required for AI agents. These competitive advantages create a structural demand for the NEAR token to pay for the computational resources of the network.

The development of DeFi on NEAR is also progressing at a rapid pace. Yield farming and staking protocols on the network generate a recurring demand for the NEAR token that structurally supports the price. The market capitalization of NEAR remains significantly lower than that of competitors like Solana or Avalanche despite offering comparable utility. This valuation differential is exactly what institutional investors look for during sector rotation phases. The crypto trend favoring assets with real utility and a strong AI narrative structurally works in favor of NEAR in this cycle.

The comparison with the 2021 cycle is highly instructive. NEAR saw its price multiply by 20 during the last bull run thanks to a similar combination of technical and fundamental catalysts. The current context brings together even more favorable conditions including broader institutional adoption, a dominant AI narrative, and a more developed user base. The growing developer interest in the network translates into an increase in on-chain transactions and protocol revenues. These fundamental metrics justify a growing valuation premium against competing altcoins that lack such a clear narrative.

NEAR at $2.50 and beyond, consolidation or new impulse?

The psychological resistance of $2.50 is the next technical hurdle to watch. A daily close above this level would open the door toward $2.80 and then $3.20 in extension, corresponding to the 61.8% and 78.6% Fibonacci retracement levels of the last bearish cycle. If Bitcoin resumes its climb above $80,000, the most optimistic targets for NEAR suggest a range between $5 and $8 in this full cycle scenario.

For investors looking to invest in crypto through NEAR, a pullback toward $1.90 to $2.00 would represent the optimal entry point if consolidation materializes. A HODL strategy is justified for profiles with an investment horizon longer than 6 months. Traders focused on day trading will monitor the reaction at $2.50 as a primary directional signal. A rejection without volume would confirm the need for consolidation before the next impulse. The 2025 to 2026 crypto bull run has not yet said its last word on Near Protocol.

The fear and greed index climbing back toward neutrality creates a favorable backdrop for assets with strong momentum. Monitoring inflows on exchanges like Binance and OKX will help anticipate any institutional selling pressure. In a market where the AI crypto narrative dominates capital flows, NEAR stands out as one of the best positioned altcoins of this cycle.

Sources:

• NEARProtocol on X
• WhaleFactor on X

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