Chainlink’s LINK is up nearly 3% and is now targeting the $25 level.
The market is undergoing a recovery after a bearish start to the week.
LINK recovers from Monday’s dip
LINK, the native coin of the Chainlink blockchain, lost roughly 8% of its value on Monday as the market opened the new week bearish. The flush saw LINK drop to the $20.3 low yesterday, but it has now slightly recovered.
At press time, LINK is trading at $21.835 per coin, and could rally higher in the near term as the broader crypto market embarks on a recovery. BTC reclaimed the $113k level earlier today, while Ether, XRP, SOL, BNB, and DOGE are all performing well over the last few hours.
Chainlink remains one of the most widely used blockchains in the crypto space and beyond. As it continues to gain adoption, LINK’s value could soar higher in the medium to long term.
LINK targets $25 as $20 support holds
The LINK/USD 4-hour chart is bearish and efficient as LINK lost 8% of its value over the last seven days. The momentum indicators remain bearish but are showing signs of recovery in the near term.
The MACD lines crossed over into bearish territory during the weekend, with the RSI of 36 also confirming a bearish bias in the near term.
If the bearish trend continues, LINK could retest the $20.3 low again over the next few hours. Failure to defend this low could see LINK drop below $20 for the first time since August 9.
On the flip side, if the market recovery gains momentum, LINK could surge higher and hit the TLQ level at $23.89 over the next few hours. An extended bullish run would allow the coin to touch $25 for the second time this month.
SOL is down 1% in the last 24 hours and is now trading below $220.
The coin could reclaim the $250 psychological level soon if market recovery continues.
SOL dips below $220
As seen in recent weeks, the cryptocurrency market began the new week in a bearish mode. Bitcoin dropped below the $112k mark while Ether temporarily tested the $4k support level.
SOL, the native coin of the Solana blockchain, also lost roughly 5% of its value on Monday, dropping to the $212 support level. However, it has slightly bounced back and is now trading at $219 per coin.
The positive performance comes as the broader cryptocurrency market embarks on a recovery. Bitcoin reclaimed the $113k mark earlier today, while Ether is now eyeing the $4,300 region.
SOL is also recovering excellently and could reclaim the $250 psychological level in the near term.
SOL could surge to $250
The SOL/USD 4-hour chart is bearish and efficient, as Solana has lost 7% of its value over the last seven days. The technical indicators are also negative, suggesting that sellers remain in control.
However, the bears are losing steam as SOL has found support around the $212 region. The RSI of 34 is below the neutral 50, indicating a bearish trend. The MACD lines also dropped below the neutral zone over the weekend.
If the selloff continues, SOL could retest Monday’s low of $212 over the next few hours. An extended bearish run could see the cryptocurrency drop below $200 for the first time since September 1st.
However, the broader crypto market is undergoing a correction. If the correction persists, SOL could reclaim the nearest resistance and TLQ level at $250 over the next few hours. It would need the support of the broader cryptocurrency market if it intends to hit $260 for the first time since January.
Stellar’s recent performance reflects its growing alignment with XRP’s market dynamics, as bulls capitalise on demand.
XLM could break to $0.41 and target a $0.58-$0.80 price range.
Stellar’s XLM token is trading at $0.39, with a price increase of over 4% in the past 24 hours.
Stellar (XLM) price rose slightly on Tuesday, with about 4% gains pushing the XLM value to above $0.37.
The XLM token, which has gained amid upticks for Ripple’s XRP, outpaced the rival as several coins looked to put Monday’s rout in the rearview mirror.
Even though Stellar remains well off its all-time high reached in 2018, the latest spike signals a potential resilience as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP hold onto gains.
NEAR Protocol is among the outperformers on Tuesday morning.
Stellar price today
Stellar’s XLM token is trading at $0.39, with a price increase of over 4% in the past 24 hours.
According to market data by CoinMarketCap, XLM’s price gains come as daily trading volume experiences a 10% down flip.
The volume of over $297 million is nonetheless robust.
Other than ETF buzz, Stellar has benefited from milestones such as asset tokenisation and regulatory shifts.
Stellar has also seen a major institutional interest in real-world assets.
During Meridian25, the Stellar Development Foundation announced access to more than $3 billion in RWA on Stellar.
Issuers tapping into XLM’s ecosystem include PayPal, Ondo Finance, Mercado Bitcoin, Centrifuge and RedSwan Digital Real Estate.
The recent launch of PayPal USD on the Stellar network has bolstered transaction activity.
Ether fell as much as 9% in a single session on Monday, wiping out $500 million in bets.
Bitcoin traded 0.8% lower, with nervous positioning seen in options.
$23 billion in Bitcoin and Ether contracts are due to expire on Friday.
A sharp crash on Monday wiped more than $1.5 billion from leveraged cryptocurrency positions, underscoring how fragile digital asset markets remain.
The sudden liquidation wave, one of the largest this year, unfolded without a clear catalyst and hit Ether especially hard.
By Tuesday morning in Asia, the dust had begun to settle, but prices remained under pressure and traders were braced for more turbulence as a record options expiry approached.
Monday’s crash triggers heavy liquidations
On Monday, Ether led the declines with losses of up to 9%, sparking the unwinding of nearly $500 million in bullish bets.
Bitcoin also retreated, falling sharply before stabilising with a smaller 0.8% decline.
In total, more than $1.5 billion in leveraged positions were forced out across exchanges, making it one of the year’s biggest liquidation events after months of speculative rallies.
Analysts said the drop showed how quickly leverage combined with thin liquidity can turn into widespread selling.
Tuesday’s session shows nervous stability
By Tuesday morning in Asia, the market was calmer, though sentiment remained cautious.
Ether trimmed its losses to around 0.9%, while Bitcoin also traded 0.8% lower.
Options activity pointed to traders positioning for further swings rather than stability, with significant bets placed on Bitcoin falling below $95,000 or rising above $140,000 before the month-end.
The appetite for protection in both directions highlighted just how unsettled sentiment has become.
Expiring contracts add to pressure
Deribit data showed that roughly $23 billion of Bitcoin and Ether options contracts are due to expire on Friday, one of the largest expiries ever recorded.
This event has amplified caution across the market, with traders expecting volatility to dominate in the near term.
Short-term options have grown in popularity as investors look for cheaper exposure to sudden price moves, turning volatility itself into the trade.
Meanwhile, crypto treasury firms that earlier drove demand by raising funds to buy tokens have slowed their purchases.
With share prices falling, these companies have less capacity to raise capital, reducing support for prices and adding to downward pressure.
Leverage and liquidity risks remain
Data from Binance shows open interest in perpetual futures has surged over the past few months, with Ether seeing the strongest speculative activity.
The structure has left the token more exposed to sharp reversals, acting as a higher-beta proxy for digital asset sentiment in periods of stress.
Bitcoin, by contrast, has shown relatively steadier trading thanks to deeper liquidity and its growing role in institutional portfolios.
Even so, analysts caution that the higher levels of leverage in the system compared to last year mean the risk of large swings remains.
With the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates, some expect new inflows to offset selling pressure, but links between Bitcoin and equities suggest macro policy will continue to shape its path.
NEAR surged more than 9% as bulls rode the latest artificial intelligence-related sentiment.
The Nvidia and OpenAI partnership and $100 billion investment are a huge boost to ecosystem confidence.
Short term, NEAR price could target a 200% rally to above $8.20
NEAR Protocol price has jumped 9% in the past 24 hours as artificial intelligence-related developments buoy investor sentiment.
As tokens such as AI Companions exploded, NEAR’s price climbed by more than 9% to highs of $3.15.
The surge reflected a sharp bounce from its intraday lows, with heightened enthusiasm amid AI-centric optimism. Gains see NEAR price buck the trend that had the crypto market reeling from a $1.7 billion wipe out amid sharp losses.
Near Protocol price bounces amid major AI news
The NEAR Protocol token experienced a robust 9% surge on September 23, 2025, rebounding from recent volatility and trading at $3.15 by midday, according to data from major exchanges.
NEAR’s price uptick follows a period of consolidation, with the token dipping below $2.90 earlier in the week amid broader crypto market pressure.
Also notable is the spike in trading volume, which was up by more than 25% to $370 million as investor confidence in NEAR rose.
At the heart of this momentum is NEAR’s strategic positioning as “the blockchain for AI,” a narrative reinforced by recent ecosystem advancements.
Just days prior, on September 16, NEAR announced a pivotal integration with the Allora Network, enhancing its Shade Agent infrastructure with predictive AI capabilities.
This collaboration introduces four AI engineering competitions focused on price prediction challenges across major blockchains, including NEAR, Solana, Bitcoin, and Ethereum.
By enabling autonomous bots to interact seamlessly with multiple chains while preserving data privacy, Shade Agents exemplify NEAR’s vision of serving as the “execution layer for the AI economy.”
These developments have propelled the combined market capitalization of AI-related tokens to over $34 billion.
Developers and capital are reflowing into top AI-related projects and NEAR’s scalable, sharded architecture gives it an upper hand.
Nvidia’s $100 billion bet on OpenAI
Compounding this excitement is the seismic announcement from industry giants OpenAI and Nvidia on September 22, 2025, which has sent ripples through the AI and crypto sectors.
Nvidia revealed plans to invest up to $100 billion in OpenAI to deploy at least 10 gigawatts of AI data centers powered by millions of its GPUs, marking what executives described as the “biggest AI infrastructure deployment in history.”
The first gigawatt is slated for rollout in late 2026 using Nvidia’s Vera Rubin platform, with the partnership aiming to accelerate OpenAI’s pursuit of superintelligent systems.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman highlighted its role in scaling compute for agentic AI and multimodal applications.
Notably, OpenAI and NVIDIA’s landmark collaboration not only boosted Nvidia’s stock by nearly 4%, adding $170 billion to its market cap, but also amplified the AI supercycle.
NEAR, riding the sentiment, is up 9% in the past 24 hours and now stands over 16% in the past week.
Near price forecast
With AI momentum ticking even higher, analysts project a bullish trajectory for crypto tokens within the ecosystem. Projects like Worldcoin, Bittensor and Render are recording significant network growth, and among these stands NEAR Protocol.
Past bullish flips have seen most tokens at the intersection of AI and blockchain technology bursting into life.
In 2025 and beyond, Near Protocol claims to be one of the top platforms. Fueled by its AI integrations, developer adoption, and macroeconomic tailwinds like the Federal Reserve’s recent rate cut, price has hovered at key levels.
Short-term, network growth metrics and technical strength are key. The daily chart above suggests NEAR could successfully retest resistance at $3.50 and target highs of $4.00 and then $8.20 for a 200% rally.
On the downside, support is likely around $2.30 and $1.89.
