Nov 29, 2024

6thTrade

A recent report from Messari has provided insight into NEAR Protocol's performance during the volatile third quarter (Q3) of 2024. The broader cryptocurrency market faced significant fluctuations, and NEAR was no exception, with its market cap dropping by 27% during this period.

NEAR’s Q3 Performance Overview

In Q2 2024, the crypto market downturn continued into Q3, causing NEAR’s circulating market cap to fall to approximately $5.16 billion—a 27.52% quarter-over-quarter (QoQ) decline. The token price also saw a slight decrease, closing the quarter at $5.29, down by 0.21% from the previous quarter.

Despite these setbacks, NEAR managed to hold its position as the 17th largest cryptocurrency by market cap, showing relative stability compared to other digital assets.

Market Recovery and Recent Gains

Over the past three weeks, NEAR has rebounded, gaining 54% in market cap, climbing to $7.99 billion. This recovery has been fueled by the broader market rally led by Bitcoin (BTC) and external catalysts, including the political developments surrounding Donald Trump’s election.

Revenue and Transaction Fees

One of the most notable aspects of NEAR’s Q3 performance was the decline in its revenue, which is derived from network transaction fees (excluding storage staking). Revenue for the quarter fell to approximately $1.64 million, marking a 30.13% QoQ drop. This is the first time in the past year that NEAR’s revenue ended lower than it began, a shift attributed to a decline in transaction volume. Transaction fees dropped by 10.48% QoQ and 34.23% year-over-year.

Token Supply and Staking

As of the end of Q3 2024, NEAR had approximately 93.46% of its total token supply in circulation, with 52.36% of that supply staked. The annualized nominal yield from staking stood at 8.60%, with the real yield at 4.09%.

Address Activity and Network Engagement

Despite the revenue dip, NEAR saw a positive uptick in address activity. The average daily active returning addresses increased by 7.27% QoQ, while the number of new daily addresses rose by 11.06%. However, the protocol faced challenges in developer engagement, with a sharp decline in active developers. The number of weekly active core developers dropped by 41.28%, from 177 to 104, and the number of active ecosystem developers fell by 19.70%, from 286 to 230.

Decentralized Finance (DeFi) and TVL Growth

In decentralized finance (DeFi), NEAR’s Total Value Locked (TVL) saw modest growth, increasing by 7.63% QoQ to reach approximately $251.44 million at the end of Q3. NEAR also experienced growth in liquid staking TVL, which rose by 9.85% to $279.66 million. The LiNEAR Protocol accounted for about $145.14 million of this TVL, while the Meta Pool saw a 12.70% increase, totaling around $126.61 million.

NEAR’s Current Market Position

As of now, NEAR is trading at $6.745, having experienced substantial gains of 27% over the past 14 days and 46% over the past 30 days. Year-to-date, NEAR has surged by an impressive 266%, signaling a strong recovery from its earlier Q3 decline.

Conclusion

While Q3 2024 proved challenging for NEAR, with significant drops in market cap, transaction fees, and developer engagement, the protocol is beginning to recover. The recent market rally, growing address activity, and solid staking metrics suggest that NEAR could continue to rebound in the coming quarters, positioning itself as a resilient player in the competitive blockchain space.