Why Near Protocol, Ondo, and Hyperliquid Crypto Tokens Surged on May 24

Near Protocol (NEAR), Ondo (ONDO), and Hyperliquid (HYPE) recorded sharp price gains on May 24, 2026, as investors capitalized on recent dips across the digital asset market. NEAR Protocol climbed 13% during the session, following a broader rally that saw the token surge 172% from its 2026 lows. The upward momentum for these specific assets highlights a growing market preference for protocols bridging the gap between blockchain infrastructure and artificial intelligence.

The recent price action follows a period of concentrated volatility and high-volume trading. While some broader assets have seen fluctuations as AI and quantum tech divert capital from traditional holdings, NEAR and HYPE have emerged as primary beneficiaries of shifting liquidity. NEAR specifically climbed from a monthly low of $1.25 to roughly $2.15 by May 22, before continuing its ascent through the weekend.

Market participants are increasingly focusing on the \”Agentic Web,\” a framework where autonomous AI agents manage complex on-chain interactions. NEAR’s founders, who possess deep backgrounds in AI research, have positioned the protocol to handle these decentralized identities and payments. This strategic focus, coupled with robust technical developments, has allowed these tokens to outperform much of the altcoin market over the last seven days.

Near Protocol surges on AI integration and short liquidations

NEAR’s 13% jump on May 24 was preceded by a massive short squeeze that caught bearish traders off-guard. On May 22, the token breached a critical resistance trendline at $1.72, leading to nearly $5.8 million in short liquidations within 24 hours. As the price pushed further to $2.30, an additional $9.85 million in short positions were wiped out, forcing buybacks that drove the price to a six-month high of $2.34.

The protocol’s momentum was further bolstered by NVIDIA’s first-quarter FY2027 earnings report on May 20. NVIDIA reported revenue of $81.6 billion and profits of $58.3 billion, an 85% year-over-year increase. During the call, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang remarked that \”Agentic AI has arrived,\” a sentiment that resonated with NEAR’s current development roadmap and its Near.ai platform models.

Network scaling and enterprise AI tooling developments

Beyond market speculation, NEAR has introduced several technical upgrades to support its AI-centric vision. The platform recently launched confidential payments and automatic redaction of personally identifiable information (PII) for AI agents. These privacy-focused tools are designed to facilitate secure, autonomous transactions on the blockchain while scaling the network for enterprise use.

Network usage metrics reflect this expansion, with developer activity rising over 40% year-over-year. Total value locked (TVL) across Near Protocol has surged by more than 120% during the same period. Additionally, the integration of CoW Swap using NEAR Intents for cross-chain settlement has helped elevate the number of unique holders and drive 24-hour trading volume to $1.15 billion in late May.

Hyperliquid reaches all-time high on record derivatives volume

Hyperliquid (HYPE) hit its all-time high as of May 24, 2026, jumping over 10% in daily trading. The platform’s volume soared to $6.2 billion in the 24 hours leading up to May 24, a figure that exceeded the combined volume of competitors like Aster, ApeX Protocol, Lighter, and edgeX. Much of this activity was driven by traders speculating on crude oil and gold futures.

The spike in commodities trading followed President Trump’s announcement of a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Hyperliquid has evolved from a decentralized perpetual futures exchange into a broader financial ecosystem, attracting significant capital from both retail and institutional sources. American investor interest is particularly evident in the performance of recently launched ETFs tracking the ecosystem.

ETF inflows and the impact of HIP-4 innovation

Institutional demand for Hyperliquid has translated into significant fund inflows. 21Shares’ THYP added over $48 million, while Bitwise’s BHYP grew by more than $40 million. These combined inflows of over $74 million suggest a strong appetite for HYPE among regulated financial products. This institutional backing coincides with technical shifts intended to keep liquidity within the platform.

The implementation of HIP-4 introduced outcome-based trading, allowing users to trade views on events that traditional perpetual futures cannot capture. This new instrument contributes approximately $25 million to Hyperliquid’s $636 million run rate. Furthermore, 90% of the yield generated by Circle’s USDC on the platform is now recycled back into HYPE buybacks, creating a consistent demand floor for the token.

Ondo Finance and the momentum of real-world assets

Ondo (ONDO) joined the rally on May 24 with a gain of over 10%, reflecting broader risk appetite for decentralized finance (DeFi) assets. ONDO’s rise is frequently tied to the growth of tokenized real-world assets (RWAs), a sector that continues to attract interest as traditional yields are brought on-chain. The token’s performance is often viewed alongside NEAR and HYPE as a signal of returning confidence in fundamental-driven projects.

The market capitalization for AI and big data crypto projects rose 8% to $21.44 billion by May 22, providing a supportive backdrop for ONDO’s move. As the market landscape shifts, projects offering clear utility and high-performance infrastructure are seeing the most consistent accumulation. While NEAR benefited from a short-squeeze event, ONDO’s rise appears more closely linked to general sector rotation and the success of cross-chain liquidity hubs.

Looking ahead, the sustainability of these gains will likely depend on continued network adoption. With NEAR at the intersection of privacy and AI, and Hyperliquid dominating on-chain derivatives volume, the concentration of capital suggests these sectors will remain a primary focus for the remainder of Q2 2026. The next milestone for the sector may involve the continued rollout of rare earth and commodity-linked financial products that increasingly find a home on high-throughput blockchains.