NEAR Rockets as Bitwise ETF Clears a Major Hurdle

NEAR Protocol's token surged roughly 48% in seven days to reach a one-year high near $5.45 after Bitwise's spot NEAR ETF cleared key Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) registration and NYSE Arca listing hurdles. The fund will trade under the ticker NRR.

Registration Statement Clears The SEC

The SEC's registration statement for the Bitwise NEAR ETF became effective on Sept. 24, and Bitwise filed a Form 8-A to register the ETF shares for trading on NYSE Arca, Coinpedia reported. The fund is designed to hold NEAR directly and seek additional returns through staking, with a sponsor fee listed at 0.75% in its prospectus. The listing approval moves the product closer to launch, though a confirmed trading date has not been established.NEAR joins a growing list of altcoins with U.S. spot ETFs, after Ether (2024) and XRP (2025). The fund's staking component sets it apart from most existing crypto ETFs, which do not pass yield through to shareholders.

Bitwise Projects A $155 Base Case for 2030

Bitwise released a 39-page NEAR investment report alongside the ETF filings, co-authored by Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan. The report's base-case valuation model projects a NEAR price of $155 by 2030, while an extreme bull case reaches $562. A bear scenario puts the token at $1.63 if adoption assumptions fail.Crypto analyst Michaël van de Poppe posted on X that the base case for NEAR is above $150 and the bull case above $550, adding that he does not think the market is bullish enough on crypto for the coming years. The Bitwise report cites Visa's $15.7 trillion payment volume in 2024 as part of its valuation framework, comparing NEAR's potential role in the digital economy to established payment networks.

Staking Yield Could Differentiate The Fund

The 0.75% sponsor fee is notable because NEAR's staking yield currently exceeds that cost, meaning the fund could generate a positive net yield for holders even before any price appreciation. That structure creates a fundamentally different value proposition than existing Bitcoin ETFs, which function purely as price-tracking vehicles. Institutional allocators who evaluate crypto ETFs against fixed-income alternatives may find the yield component a more compelling entry point.

Technical Breakout Supports Momentum

NEAR's weekly chart shows a decisive breakout from a multi-year descending trendline that had capped rallies throughout 2025. The token cleared the $4.40 to $4.60 resistance zone and now trades near $5.30, with $5.50 to $5.75 as the next immediate technical hurdle before $6 comes into view.The regulatory filings do not establish a confirmed launch date for the Bitwise NEAR ETF. Approval of the final listing application and Bitwise's choice of a seeding date will determine when NRR begins trading. The $5.50 to $6.00 price range represents the next test for NEAR's technical momentum in the interim.