NEAR Buybacks Lag as Issuance Surges Sixfold

NEAR Protocol (NEAR) has been in the spotlight after Sal Ternullo, CEO of SVRN, discussed the network's token buybacks and issuance on the Bankless podcast. Over the past 30 days, NEAR Intents fees generated about $1.9 million in buybacks, while the network issued roughly $13 million in new tokens. Ternullo emphasized that buybacks are 'still real,' but issuance far outpaces them.

NEAR Intents, a cross-chain swap service, has processed over $32 billion in volume. The tokens bought through fees are held in a 'permanent capital vehicle,' with no immediate plans to burn them. This contrasts with projects that permanently remove tokens from circulation, affecting supply dynamics. Ternullo proposed a governance plan to reduce NEAR's maximum annual issuance from 2.5% to 1.6% over two years, which would lower staking yields from about 5.4% to 3.5%.

Despite the issuance concerns, NEAR's price has surged more than 119% over the past month and over 240% year-to-date. Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley noted growing institutional interest in NEAR, as investors seek alternatives beyond Bitcoin (BTC). Bitwise launched the first US spot ETF for NEAR, which raised $58.89 million in its first week, holding 0.88% of the token's market value.

SVRN stock saw a 3% decline during midday trading, while retail sentiment shifted from 'extremely bullish' to 'bullish.' NEAR's retail sentiment remained neutral, with normal chatter levels. The broader AI-linked tokens sector, which includes NEAR, has outperformed the wider crypto market.