Bitwise's NEAR ETF Launches with Price Targets; Max Case Above $560

Bitwise has launched the first US spot NEAR ETF (NEAR), which started trading on NYSE Arca on Tuesday under the ticker NRR.

The product arrives as NEAR's price has roughly tripled.

The Price Surge Preceded the ETF Launch

According to BeInCrypto Markets data, NEAR is trading at $5.04, a 175.24% increase over 30 days from under $2 at the beginning of September.

That gain places it fourth among the 100 largest crypto assets by monthly returns, per CoinGecko.

Most of the increase occurred in the latter half of September as the listing passed its last hurdles. NYSE Arca certified the fund's SEC registration on September 28, the day before trading started.

The rally also boosted Bitwise's European NEAR product, which saw its assets exceed $100 million this month, though most of that came from the token price rise.

Grayscale submitted a filing in January to convert its NEAR trust into an ETF, but that fund has not yet listed, meaning Bitwise got to US investors first.

The Bitwise NEAR ETF ($NRR), the first spot $NEAR ETP in the US, is now trading on NYSE Arca. It gives institutions straightforward access to the protocol powering universal markets, the privacy renaissance, and user-owned AI. https://t.co/qqraopVABm

— NEAR Protocol (@NEARProtocol) September 29, 2026

Bitwise's Pitch to US Investors

NRR has a 0.75% management fee. Bitwise intends to stake the fund's NEAR internally, providing shareholders with exposure to the network's average staking reward of roughly 5%.

Beyond the yield, Bitwise promotes NEAR as a settlement layer for AI agents that book, pay, and swap on behalf of users.

"NEAR sits at the intersection of two of the biggest trends in technology: AI and crypto. As AI agents start transacting on our behalf—booking, paying, swapping, and more—the world is going to need settlement infrastructure that's fast, trustworthy, and doesn't depend on a single custodian," Matt Hougan, Chief Investment Officer of Bitwise, said.

The launch announcement cites NEAR Intents, its flagship product, as early proof. The protocol has handled over $32 billion, up from less than $1 billion a year earlier.

In a previous research report, the asset manager outlined what that wager could be worth. Its base case projects NEAR at $155.85 by end-2030, roughly 31 times today's price.

The bear case estimates NEAR at $1.63 by 2030, far under the current $5.04. It assumes centralized AI companies like OpenAI come to dominate. The max case reaches $562.81.

At the same time, the launch comes as Bitwise pulls back elsewhere. The firm is closing BWOW, its Dogecoin (DOGE) ETF, which ceases trading on October 14.

The closure of BWOW demonstrates that a low fee by itself did not attract US investors to a single-token fund. NRR's early weeks of flow data will indicate if demand for NEAR goes beyond the price rally.