NEAR Jumps 12% Above $5 as Helius CEO Joins Council

NEAR Protocol climbed more than 12% over a 24-hour window to trade above $5.20 on October 16, as markets responded to governance changes and expanding cross-chain volume, according to CryptoNews.

Data from CoinGecko showed NEAR changing hands near $5.21 with a market capitalization of $6.82 billion and daily trading volume around $1.24 billion. The token traded between $4.54 and $5.43 during the session, rebounding from recent selling pressure after failing to sustain a test of the $6 level. Over the trailing 30-day period, the token remains up approximately 122%.

Governance addition and cross-chain metrics

The price advance followed an October 14 announcement that Helius chief executive Mert Mumtaz joined the NEAR Foundation Council. Mumtaz, whose company provides Solana infrastructure, joins NEAR co-founder Illia Polosukhin, Anchorage Digital co-founder Diogo Mónica, former Foundation chief operating officer Chris Donovan, and NEAR One founder Bowen Wang on the governing body.

The Foundation reported that NEAR Intents, a system facilitating cross-chain asset swaps through competing liquidity providers, has surpassed $33 billion in cumulative transaction volume. Confidential total value locked within the protocol's privacy-focused infrastructure exceeded $160 million, up from $70 million recorded in September.

Technical resistance near six dollars

On the daily chart, NEAR held above its four primary exponential moving averages, with the 20-day EMA at $4.903 and the 50-day EMA at $4.052. However, momentum indicators signaled potential consolidation, as the Moving Average Convergence Divergence line read 0.368 against a signal line of 0.454.

Market analysts noted that NEAR faces primary resistance at $5.97, matching its October 11 peak. Chart analyst Rekt Capital highlighted that holding support near $4.90 remains critical to preventing a retest of the range low near $3.79, while analyst Giannis Andreou identified $6.00 as the pivotal threshold for sustaining upward momentum.

Key facts

• NEAR rose more than 12% in 24 hours to trade near $5.21, supported by $1.24 billion in daily volume.
• Helius CEO Mert Mumtaz joined the NEAR Foundation Council on October 14.
• NEAR Intents processed more than $33 billion in cumulative transaction volume.
• Confidential total value locked reached over $160 million.