Kategorie: Altcoin News

• NEAR jumps 11% to $2.98 as Nvidia’s $5B Intel stake sparks AI crypto rally.
• AI tokens surge with NEAR, TAO, Render and The Graph gaining on chip deal optimism.
• NEAR eyes $3.6–$4 breakout as AI adoption and bullish charts fuel momentum.

NEAR Protocol price jumped more than 11% in 24 hours to hit $2.98 amid a broader rally in AI-linked cryptocurrencies.

The AI token’s uptick aligned with momentum that stemmed from Nvidia’s strategic $5 billion investment in Intel, with Bittensor, Render and The Graph among the top crypto AI gainers.

Tokens like Aster jumped 500% on Thursday.

NEAR price retests $2.98 as Nvidia news boosts AI tokens

NEAR Protocol’s token experienced a sharp uptick, retesting the $2.98 resistance level with an 11% pump.

This came after the cryptocurrency traded to lows of $2.70 earlier in the week, and the surge aligns with the overall crypto bounce and Nvidia’s announcement of a $5 billion equity stake in Intel.

This deal, which includes collaborative development of AI-optimized PC and data center chips.

It’s a move that points to Nvidia’s push to fortify US semiconductor capabilities amid global supply chain tensions.

The investment arrives at a pivotal moment for Intel, following a $9 billion US government stake via the CHIPS Act and a $2 billion infusion from SoftBank, bolstering Intel’s balance sheet and foundry ambitions without immediate reliance on Nvidia’s manufacturing needs.

AI tokens surge

For the AI crypto ecosystem, this move amplifies optimism as the partnership signals the AI chipmaker’s potential to “innovate for customers” as it grows its business.

NEAR, designed as an AI-native blockchain with sharding technology enabling up to 100,000 transactions per second, stands to benefit if momentum catalyzes price gains.

The protocol’s Nightshade consensus and tools like Near Tasks for AI agents resonate with Nvidia’s ecosystem, and key integrations may see the altcoin explode further.

Today’s Nvidia-fueled pump has similarly lifted the AI token sector: TAO climbed 7.7%,RENDER 8%, and The Graph (GRT) 5.9%, per CoinMarketCap data.

Broader market tailwinds, including Bitcoin’s recovery to above $117,600, have added an uplift to the upswing.

NEAR’s market cap moved back above $3.7 billion to rank 34th among top cryptocurrencies.

What’s next for NEAR price?

NEAR’s trajectory hinges on sustained AI momentum and technical breakouts targeting $3.6.

Both the RSI and MACD on the daily chart support upside continuation.

A look at the chart also shows a potential triangle pattern breakout.

While downturn risks include macroeconomic headwinds, such as potential US regulatory scrutiny on AI chips or broader crypto volatility, NEAR has the potential to see levels above $4 in coming weeks.

The project’s protocol upgrades and global AI adoption trends could allow bulls to target highs of $8.

On the flip side, primary support could be around $2.62.

The post NEAR protocol price surges as AI Tokens jump on Nvidia’s $5 Billion intel bet appeared first on CoinJournal.

• Lagrange price skyrocketed by over 80% after South Korea’s largest crypto exchange, Upbit, announced trading support.
• Upbit also listed Lombard, a Bitcoin DeFi protocol.
• Both BARD and LA tokens pared gains amid rising profit-taking.

Lagrange (LA), a zero-knowledge (ZK) infrastructure project, saw its price skyrocket by more than 80% following a listing announcement by Upbit, South Korea’s leading cryptocurrency exchange.

As Upbit’s move sparked widespread interest, LA price reached intraday highs of $0.64 and ranked among the top gainers as it outpaced the likes of Wormhole, EigenLayer and Pudgy Penguins.

Lombard, another token landing on Upbit, witnessed a sharp spike before swiftly paring gains amid profit-taking.

Lagrange price soars 80% after Upbit listing announcement

As noted, upward momentum for Lagrange gained traction with the announcement of its listing on Upbit.

In an update, Upbit said it would list LA for spot trading against the Korean won, with the BARD/KRW pair available at 19:30 pm local time on Sept. 18.

Following the news, LA’s price spiked by more than 80%, pushing the token’s value to highs of $0.64.

LA price had hovered at lows of $0.35 prior to Upbit’s announcement.

The price surge aligns with historical trends that have seen newly listed tokens, particularly on major exchanges like Upbit, go parabolic amid significant volatility.

Upbit also lists the Bitcoin DeFi platform Lombard

South Korea’s Upbit has also expanded its list of supported cryptocurrencies with the listing of  Lombard (BARD).

The exchange announced trading support for the native token of the Bitcoin DeFi platform on Thursday, adding trading pairs for BTC and Korean won.

Upbit’s listing of BARD adds to the growing number of tokens that have found traction on the leading crypto exchange in South Korea.

Investors interested in leveraging Bitcoin’s stability for DeFi applications will fancy Lombard, which aims to bring Bitcoin-based capital markets on-chain, and rallied amid a confluence of other factors too.

BARD and LA price outlook

Lagrange’s zero-knowledge proof generation platform has attracted support from global giants such as Nvidia, ZKSync developer Matter Labs and Polygon.

Meanwhile, Lombard is a project looking to tap into Bitcoin’s growing DeFi ecosystem. Analysts note that both tokens are riding exchange momentum.

Nonetheless, volatility may engulf both before a steadier growth trajectory emerges.

As of writing, LA traded around $0.48, sharply paring gains amid a staggering 1,120% spike in daily trading volume.

BARD meanwhile hovered around $1.08, again having sharply retreated from its intraday peak of $1.61.

Analysts expect the buzz around these tokens will cool off and likely add to downward pressure.

However, the overall broader market sentiment is bullish.

As such, holding key levels at $0.40 and $1 could be key to LA and BARD’s short term price outlook.

The post Lagrange price rockets 80% amid listing on South Korea’s largest crypto exchange appeared first on CoinJournal.

• Mantle surged by 15% to reach a record high of $1.77.
• The total value locked exceeded $2 billion, making Mantle the largest ZK rollup by TVL.
• Mantle’s transaction volumes also soared, with hundreds of thousands of daily transactions.

Mantle Network’s native token, MNT, surged to a record all-time high of $1.77 on September 17, 2025, driven by the successful completion of its mainnet upgrade to a zero-knowledge (ZK) rollup architecture in a landmark development for Ethereum’s Layer 2 ecosystem.

This price gain comes as other cryptocurrencies like PancakeSwap and Filecoin also edge higher.

Mantle completes ZK rollup upgrade

Mantle’s transition from an optimistic rollup to a full ZK rollup represents a pivotal evolution in its infrastructure with the upgrade, enabling the network to generate validity proofs for state transitions without disclosing underlying data, thereby bolstering security and reducing reliance on fraud-proof challenges.

This shift addresses longstanding limitations of optimistic models, where transactions assume validity until contested, potentially delaying finality.

“With today’s mainnet upgrade, the journey is complete: Mantle is now the world’s largest ZK rollup by TVL, with over $2 billion secured by Succinct’s technology,” said Edward Li, growth and business development lead at Succinct.

Mantle’s total value locked (TVL) stood at approximately $218 million prior to the upgrade as  post-implementation having ballooned to over $2 billion, cementing its status as the world’s largest ZK rollup by this metric.

By incorporating EigenLayer’s , Mantle ensures robust decentralization without overburdening the base chain, a hybrid approach that has drawn praise from developers seeking EVM-compatible environments.

Mantle price outlook and token performance

The announcement catalyzed an immediate price rally for Mantle, with MNT climbing over 15% to breach its previous peak of $1.68 set last month.

According to trading data from major exchanges like Binance and Coinbase, MNT’s market capitalization surpassed $5.4 billion, ranking it among the top 30 cryptocurrencies.

Analysts have also related the price surge to a number of factors, like renewed institutional interest in ZK technologies amid Ethereum’s Dencun upgrade.

Mantle’s ecosystem incentives, including yield-bearing stablecoins like mETH and upcoming products such as crypto index funds, also boosted price.

Looking at Mantle’s price chart, the cryptocurrency trades around $1.64, slightly lower than the $1.77 all-time high.

Selling pressure contributed to the decline in MNT price.

However, bulls are targeting a new ATH amid a bull flag pattern as Mantle’s ZK framework unlocks cross-rollup interoperability.

With over 5.86 million active accounts already, predictions suggest total value locked could double by year-end, driven by partnerships with EigenLayer and Succinct.

Nonetheless broader market challenges might persist, including competition from established ZK players like Polygon zkEVM and potential regulatory scrutiny on restaking mechanisms.

In this case, the price levels to watch could include $1.40 and $1.09.

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