NEAR Protocol, the Blockchain Operating System (BOS), experienced significant growth in key statistics during the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2023. The protocol’s native token, NEAR, recorded a remarkable 16% growth since the beginning of the year and witnessed an increase in adoption.
Circulating market capitalization increases by 245%
According to a Messari reportIn the fourth quarter of 2023, the entire crypto market capitalization increased, largely driven by expectations surrounding the introduction of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
NEAR actively participated in the overall market recovery and achieved additional gains thanks to increased network activity and major announcements. As a result, NEARs circulating market capitalization for the end of 2023 was $3.7 billion, representing a 245% increase quarter-over-quarter (QoQ) and a 246% increase year-over-year (YoY).
Additionally, NEAR’s fully diluted market cap was $4.3 billion. The protocol’s market capitalization also soared, rising 10 places to reach around 30th by the end of 2023.
In the fourth quarter of 2023, NEAR’s revenue grew significantly, generated primarily from network transaction fees, to $750,000. The increase in sales was attributed to the increased activity generated by projects such as KAIKAINOW and NEAR Inscriptions.
During the Inscriptions craze, revenues increased due to a transaction spike, which increased transaction costs. Specifically, NEAR uses a fee burning mechanism, where 70% of all fees are burned, while the remaining 30% is spent on the contract from which the transaction originates.
NEAR User base skyrockets
Another key metric showing the protocol’s growth in Q4 2023 is that NEAR has experienced significant growth in its user base.
The average number of daily active addresses increased by 1,250% year-on-year, reaching 870,000 in the fourth quarter of 2023. Moreover, the number new addresses every day grew by a remarkable 550% year-over-year to 170,000 in the fourth quarter of 2023.
According to Messari, this expansion comes after the successful launch and adoption of projects such as KAIKAINOW and contributions from the Sweat Economy, Aurora and Playember, which further supported this positive trend.
NEAR’s daily active addresses were significantly higher than other leading blockchain networks. For example, Optimism averaged 72,000 daily active addresses, Arbitrum 150,000, Polygon PoS 375,000, and Aptos 60,000 in Q4 2023.
NEAR registrations drove a significant increase in network activity, reaching an annual high of 14 million transactions in December. Despite this substantial increase, transaction costs remained stable and remained below $0.01 this quarter.
Top 25 Blockchain by TVL in Q4 2023
NEAR’s Total Value Locked (TVL) reached $128 million at the end of Q4 2023, marking a notable increase of 147% from the previous quarter. Among blockchains, NEAR positioned itself around 25th with respect to TVL.
Within the NEAR Network’s TVL, NEAR contributed $59 million, accounting for nearly 46% of the network’s total TVL. The remaining TVL was distributed among several decentralized financial institutions (DeFi) applicationsincluding Aurora, Ref, Berry Club and Flux.
In addition, NEAR announced partnerships with projects such as Chainlink and the decentralized exchange (DEX) SushiSwap.
According to Messari, the integration with Chainlink is decentralized oracle network provided NEAR developers with access to real-world data and external Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), improving the functionality and usability of NEAR-based applications.
On the other hand, the partnership with SushiSwap gave NEAR users access to a wide range of token swaps, liquidity pools, and yield farming capabilities, enabling developer adoption and greater use within the ecosystem.
Ultimately, looking ahead to 2024, Messari said the protocol’s vision is to iterate on the technology roadmap, attract more developers and attract more leading protocols.
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