Should You Buy NEAR Protocol in 2025?

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At HelloSafe, our expert has been closely monitoring the NEAR Protocol cryptocurrency for over three years. Every month, tens of thousands of users in New Zealand rely on us to analyse market trends and pinpoint the best investment opportunities. Our insights are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute investment advice. In line with our ethical guidelines, HelloSafe has never purchased NEAR Protocol nor received any compensation from entities connected to its ecosystem.

NEAR Protocol in brief

How much does 1 NEAR Protocol cost?

The price of NEAR Protocol is up this week. As of today, NEAR trades at approximately NZ$3.91, with a 24-hour gain of +4.49% and a fluctuating trend over the past week.

The current market capitalisation stands around NZ$4.77 billion, while the average daily trading volume over the past three months is about NZ$190 million.

NEAR holds the 21st spot among cryptocurrencies by market cap, with roughly 1.22 billion tokens in circulation, representing a 0.37% dominance in the overall crypto market.

As with most digital assets, NEAR remains volatile—so investors in New Zealand should follow market movements closely and consider their risk appetite.

Our full review of the NEAR Protocol crypto

Have NEAR Protocol’s latest market fluctuations, its three-year performance, and accelerated innovation truly reshaped its risk/reward profile for forward-looking investors? Leveraging our proprietary algorithms, we have synthesized on-chain telemetry, technical signals, macro data and a rigorous competitive analysis to capture nuanced shifts in NEAR’s ecosystem strength and fundamentals. So, what factors could make NEAR Protocol a strategic re-entry point in the AI Blockchain landscape for 2025 and beyond?

Recent Performance and Market Context

Price Action: 2022–2025

After peaking at $20.42 in January 2022, NEAR Protocol has experienced a sharp correction, currently trading around $2.40. This retracement—an almost 90% drawdown from all-time highs—reflects both the sector-wide crypto bear cycle and significant volatility in Layer-1 infrastructure. Over the past six months, despite choppy price action and underperformance relative to early 2023, NEAR registered intraday rebounds (e.g., +4.49% on June 7, 2025) and saw price spikes above $3.35 in May, indicating continued speculative appetite.

Recent Positive Events

• Network Upgrade: In March 2025, NEAR advanced from 6 to 8 shards, boosting throughput by 33% and confirming a robust scaling trajectory.
• AI Integration: February saw the live deployment of “Shade Agents”—the first AI-powered, on-chain autonomous agents—signalling a new chapter in decentralized, AI-native blockchain ecosystems.
• Interoperability Launches: The first quarter of 2025 ushered in OmniBridge, reinforcing NEAR’s cross-chain ambitions.
• Industry Recognition: CEO Illia Polosukhin’s spotlight at Nvidia GTC underlined NEAR’s thought leadership in the confidential AI and Web3 convergence dialogue.

Macro Environment: Tailwinds for Crypto

NEAR’s current cycle plays out against a favourable macro backdrop for digital assets:

• Central banks in major economies (NZ, US, EU) are signalling potential rate cuts, reigniting appetite for risk assets.
• Regulation in NZ and Asia Pacific increasingly recognises the legitimacy of Layer-1 protocols for Web3 and AI use-cases.
• Capital flows into blockchain-embedded AI infrastructure intensified, with NEAR positioned as a recognised “AI-native” network.

Technical Analysis

Key Technical Indicators (as of 7 June 2025)

• RSI (14 days): 42.15 — close to neutral but moving up from oversold, a level historically associated with price rebounds in crypto.
• MACD: -0.102 — recent bearish signal, but flattening MACD lines may anticipate reversal momentum as network fundamentals strengthen.
• Moving Averages: NEAR is trading just below its 20, 50, and 100-day MAs ($2.64, $2.63, $2.60) and remains distant from the 200-day MA at $3.87. Such compression often precedes decisive moves, especially if price reclaims the $2.54–$2.56 resistance band.
• Support/Resistance: Strong technical floor at $2.27–$2.40. Immediate upside zones: $2.50, then $2.54–$2.56.
• Momentum Structure: Multiple moving average “sell” signals persist, yet volume spikes and RSI recovery suggest short-term capitulation is waning—setting the stage for a technical mean reversion or accumulation phase.

Short/Mid-Term Structure

The sustained defence of the $2.27–$2.40 range indicates substantial demand absorption. Should NEAR flip the $2.50–$2.56 resistance region, modelled order flow predicts a scenario where momentum buyers and technical traders could rapidly reinforce bullish pressure—a hallmark for Layer-1 assets rebounding from cyclical lows.

Fundamental Analysis

Ecosystem Growth and Strategic Adoption

• User-Owned AI: More than 50 teams are actively building in the ecosystem, leveraging NEAR’s “AI-native” status for next-generation decentralized apps.
• Enterprise Partnerships: Strategic alliances with Deutsche Telekom, NTT DATA, and Open Agent (comprising over 20 names, incl. Coinbase and Phala) underscore institutional validation.
• Cross-Chain Assets: The integration of OmniBridge and Chain Signatures lowers friction for asset movement and unlocks new liquidity corridors.

Attractive Relative Valuation

• Market Cap: $2.93B—well below historic levels and competitive Layer-1s (Ethereum, Solana)—inviting mean-reversion interest for value-focused digital asset allocators.
• Fully Diluted Valuation (FDV): Remains competitive relative to NEAR’s infrastructure and AI leadership.
• Total Value Locked (TVL): While not at DeFi blue-chip levels, recent upgrades position NEAR to capture increased TVL as DeFi and native AI use-cases mature.

Technological Edge and Differentiation

• Nightshade 2.0: Revolutionary sharding and stateless validation mechanisms drive scalability, security, and transaction cost efficiency.
• Chain Signatures: Enable “trustless” cross-chain interactions, reducing the attack surface of conventional bridges.
• First-mover in AI-Blockchain: By positioning itself as the premier “AI-native” blockchain, NEAR is capturing early-mover advantage in one of crypto’s highest-value verticals.

Community and Governance

• Active Community Funds: 17% of supply earmarked for ongoing ecosystem grants assure dynamic grassroots growth.
• Transparent Governance: Clear US-based governance, founder engagement, and strategic grant allocation bolster investor confidence.

Volume and Liquidity

• 24h Volume: $117.2 million (as of June 2025)—indicates robust two-way liquidity, essential for institutional order execution and price discovery.
• Exchange Coverage: Listed on deep-liquidity platforms (Binance, Coinbase, OKX, Kraken, Crypto.com), NEAR is highly accessible to global capital.
• Market Positioning: NEAR remains in the Top 25 by market cap, confirming its status as a network of consequence and ongoing relevance to macro investors.

Catalysts and Bullish Drivers

• Scaling Milestones: Anticipated achievement of 1M TPS by year-end—potentially positioning NEAR as a leader in scalable, decentralized AI computation.
• AI & DeFi Synergy: Integration of on-chain AI (Shade Agents, User-Owned AI) ushers in entirely new categories of DApps, NFT mechanisms, and data marketplaces.
• Major Protocol Upgrades: Forthcoming protocol improvements (Nightshade enhancements, Chain Signatures) expected in late 2025.
• Expanding Partnerships: Continued onboarding of blue-chip institutions and strategic Web3 alliances.
• Evolving Regulation: Jurisdictions such as New Zealand offer increasingly clear paths for Layer-1 integration in digital asset portfolios, supporting NEAR’s institutional case.
• Adoption S-Curve: If open-source AI/crypto convergence accelerates, NEAR—backed by specialist infrastructure—could ride a new S-curve in both developer and user adoption.

Investment Strategies According to Time Horizon

Short-Term Entry

• For traders seeking momentum or technical mean-reversion, entries just above the current support range ($2.27–$2.40) appear contextually attractive. Tight stops below support help manage downside risk as the market recalibrates.
• Anticipation of a technical breakout above $2.54–$2.56 may trigger outsized moves, especially on catalyst-driven volume spikes.

Medium-Term Positioning

• The medium-term fundamental picture—strengthened by protocol upgrades, enterprise onboarding, and AI product rollouts—argues for accumulation on pullbacks or during periods of market consolidation.
• Seasonal flows around the launch of major updates (scheduled for Q4 2025+) suggest compelling asymmetry for investors able to withstand volatility in the $2.30–$2.80 range.

Long-Term Conviction

• For strategic, long-duration allocators, NEAR stands out as a highly differentiated Layer-1, with landmark innovation in decentralized AI infrastructure.
• Targeting entry during market-wide capitulation events, or before major net-new partnerships/products, has historically corresponded with significant upside capture in comparable Layer-1 cycles.

Momentum, robust upgrade pipelines, and a track record of engineering leadership make NEAR compelling for both crypto fund managers and individual allocators looking to underweight “legacy” protocols in favour of next-gen AI-chain convergence.

Price Outlook for NEAR Protocol

Is Now The Right Time to Consider NEAR Protocol?

NEAR Protocol embodies many of the most sought-after attributes for a forward-looking crypto asset: resilient technical structure, rapid ecosystem innovation, deep institutional engagement, and true differentiation as a foundational “AI-native” blockchain. Current price action—in a compressed zone well below former highs—underscores a potential for significant mean-reversion and strategic entry for risk-tolerant investors.

Key strengths include:

• Leading role in decentralized AI and Web3 infrastructure
• Strong developer adoption curve and growing use-case diversity (DeFi, NFTs, cross-chain)
• Excellent liquidity and market accessibility
• Multiple high-impact catalysts on the 12–24 month horizon

For investors searching for high-conviction, asymmetric digital asset exposure, NEAR Protocol’s fundamentals warrant close attention. While volatility and competition remain elevated, the unique positioning and robust roadmap suggest NEAR could well enter a new expansion phase. The evolving regulatory and macro backdrop adds further tailwinds, justifying renewed interest in this high-upside Layer-1.

Should the protocol deliver on its scaling and AI ambitions, and macro conditions remain favourable, NEAR Protocol does appear to represent an excellent opportunity in the AI-Blockchain sector’s next growth cycle.

NEAR Protocol, as a high-volatility asset, provides dynamic investment opportunities but demands disciplined risk management. Its recent price acceleration demonstrates its capacity for rapid, outsized moves—yet the shifting macro landscape requires selectivity and vigilance. Key technical levels to monitor include the $2.40 support and the $2.56 resistance. The upcoming major protocol upgrade, slated for late 2025, may serve as a pivotal catalyst for NEAR’s trajectory in the evolving crypto landscape.

How to buy NEAR Protocol?

It is simple and secure to buy NEAR Protocol (NEAR) cryptocurrency online through a regulated platform in New Zealand. Investors can choose between two main methods: spot purchase, where you own the actual coins, and crypto trading via CFDs (Contracts For Difference), which lets you speculate on NEAR’s price without owning the token. Each approach offers different risk and return profiles, so it’s important to understand how they work before you commit. To help you get started, you’ll find a side-by-side comparison of available crypto platforms further down this page.

Spot Purchase

A spot purchase of NEAR Protocol means you’re buying and directly owning the NEAR tokens, which are then stored in a wallet (either on the exchange or on your own personal wallet for extra security). This is the most straightforward way to participate in NEAR’s price movements and to use the tokens, for example, for staking or on-chain actions. Typical fees include a fixed commission per transaction, charged in New Zealand dollars (NZD), usually ranging from 0.1% to 1%, plus a small flat fee.

Example: Spot Purchase

Example: Let’s say NEAR’s current price is $2.40 USD per coin, and the NZD/USD rate is about 1.65. That makes it about $3.96 NZD per NEAR. With a $1,000 NZD investment (minus about $5 NZD in fees), you could buy approximately 251 NEAR tokens.
✔️ Gain scenario:
If NEAR’s price rises by 10%, the value of your portfolio increases to $1,100 NZD.
Result: +$100 NZD gross gain—equivalent to +10% on your investment.

Trading via CFD

Trading NEAR Protocol via CFD (Contract For Difference) means you don’t actually own any NEAR tokens. Instead, you’re opening a position with a broker that tracks NEAR’s price—either up or down. This method allows you to use leverage but comes with extra risk. The main costs are the spread (difference between buy/sell price) and “overnight funding fees” if you keep positions open for more than a day.

Example: CFD Trading

Example: You open a CFD position on NEAR using $1,000 NZD and apply 5x leverage. This gives you $5,000 NZD exposure to NEAR.
✔️ Gain scenario:
If NEAR’s price goes up by 8%, your position gains 8% × 5 = 40%.
Result: +$400 NZD profit on your original $1,000 NZD investment (excluding fees).

Final Advice

Before investing in NEAR Protocol, carefully compare the fees, security standards, and regulatory conditions of each exchange or broker. Your choice should always reflect your financial goals and experience—spot buying suits long-term holders and those wanting to actively use NEAR, while CFDs are favoured by traders seeking short-term price moves and higher risk.
For an overview of trusted crypto platforms available to NZ investors, consult our comparison tool below on this page.

Our 7 tips for buying NEAR Protocol

The latest news from the NEAR Protocol

NEAR Protocol remains accessible for New Zealand investors via Binance, Coinbase, Kraken, and Crypto.com. These leading global exchanges operate in compliance with local anti-money laundering and know-your-client regulations, making NEAR trading straightforward for NZ-based individuals and institutions. Investors benefit from a 5% annual staking reward and can access full trading functionalities, including spot, derivatives, and staking. This broad exchange presence ensures liquidity and ready market access for New Zealanders interested in NEAR, representing an improvement in digital asset market depth compared to historical availability.

Recent technical network upgrades signal accelerating innovation and scalability that may benefit global users, including those in New Zealand. The March 2025 increase from 6 to 8 shards raised network capacity by 33%, fostering a more efficient, scalable environment for decentralized applications and cross-border use cases. Such improvements directly support the vision of integrating NEAR as a blockchain backbone for infrastructure, making it more attractive for New Zealand developers and start-ups seeking robust, scalable solutions for their Web3 projects or cross-chain DeFi ambitions.

Strategic international partnerships, notably with Deutsche Telekom, NTT DATA, and Zcash, reflect growing institutional confidence which could positively influence New Zealand sentiment. These collaborations, announced and expanded in Q1–Q2 2025, validate NEAR’s approach to decentralised AI and interoperability. For New Zealand’s tech and finance sectors, the presence of such respected partners helps de-risk NEAR as a platform and could drive local enterprise experimentation and blockchain integration, particularly as the global momentum in blockchain AI-native infrastructure continues to rise.

Positive regulatory clarity in New Zealand supports the responsible trading and taxation of NEAR assets for residents. Under current NZ law, capital gains on digital assets and income from staking are taxable, but there are no restrictions prohibiting the buying, holding, or staking of NEAR. This regulatory stance, combined with robust AML/CFT frameworks, allows both individual and institutional investors to interact confidently with the asset and its ecosystem, and positions New Zealand as a secure gateway for broader crypto adoption.

NEAR’s “User-Owned AI” ecosystem growth continues with over 50 teams active, supporting global and local developer initiatives. The ongoing expansion of projects leveraging NEAR’s AI-native blockchain, such as the new Open Agent Alliance (which includes Coinbase and Phala), and cross-chain capabilities enabled by Chain Signatures and OmniBridge, offer New Zealand’s developer and investor community exposure to leading-edge Web3 technology, in line with national ambitions for digital innovation and more equitable, user-controlled digital services.

FAQ

P. Laurore

Finance expert

Co-founder of HelloSafe and holder of a Master's degree in finance, Pauline has recognised expertise in personal finance, which she uses to help users better understand and optimise their financial choices. At HelloSafe, Pauline plays a key role in designing clear, educational content on savings, investments and personal finance. Passionate about financial education, Pauline strives, with every piece of content she oversees, to provide reliable, transparent and unbiased information for independent and informed financial management. To this end, she has tested over 100 trading platforms to help internet users make the right choices.