Cardano Surges 26%, NEAR Protocol Skyrockets 80% on AI Payment Integration and Confidential Perpetuals
The altcoin market has been on fire in late September 2026. The Cardano price surged 26% in just one week after integrating an AI payment SDK that enables agents to transact directly in ADA, a major use case for the token.
Cardano's daily trading volume reached around $846 million during this move, with market cap crossing $9.38 billion. The x402 SDK integration marks a significant milestone for Cardano, enabling AI agents and applications to process payments without requiring accounts or API keys.
The next major target for ADA is reportedly $0.31, if it can establish a daily close above the key resistance level of $0.24, $0.25 and hold it on a retest.
Meanwhile, NEAR Protocol's price skyrocketed 80% in seven days following the launch of confidential perpetual futures trading powered by Hyperliquid.
The breakout is backed by strong demand for privacy-preserving trading, giving the move more structural weight than a standard altcoin rally. Analysts are targeting $4.80, $5.00 if NEAR holds a weekly close above the $4.20, $4.40 supply zone.