NEAR Protocol is capturing a growing share of the fees generated by its cross-chain swap product. @near_intents handled about $10.4 billion in volume in the third quarter, bringing lifetime v
NEAR Protocol is capturing a growing share of the fees generated by its cross-chain swap product. @near_intents handled about $10.4 billion in volume in the third quarter, bringing lifetime volume to more than $32 billion, according to @NEARProtocol's Q3 report.
Lifetime fees topped $52 million, and more than $8 million of that went toward buying back $NEAR.
The portion of Intents fees that NEAR keeps reached 16.4% over its lifetime as of October 6. That compares with 11.5% in the second-quarter report. Over the past 30 days, the retained rate stood at 28.4%.
The distinction matters because the fees charged on swaps are not all kept by the protocol. DefiLlama's methodology separates gross fees, which include the protocol fee plus the affiliate fee each front end collects, from the revenue NEAR itself captures. According to DefiLlama, NEAR's captured Intents revenue has been used to buy back $NEAR on the open market since February 23, 2026, and the tokens are not burned.
Buyback activity has picked up alongside volume. Altcoin Buzz, citing DefiLlama data, reported that September's $1.84 million was the biggest monthly buyback so far. Different trackers count the buyback total differently, depending on whether they measure tokens or dollars and which wallets they include.
Some market participants have urged caution on what buybacks can achieve. Sal Ternullo, CEO of Nasdaq-listed NEAR treasury company SVRN, said on the Bankless podcast that buybacks are real, but that the network was issuing more than six times as much new NEAR as was bought back over the prior 30 days, according to Yahoo Finance. He also floated a governance proposal to cut maximum annual issuance from 2.5% to 1.6%.
For now, the Q3 figures show both swap volume and the protocol's retained share moving higher. Whether that is enough to offset token issuance will depend on how long volume stays elevated.
DefiLlama: NEAR Intents TVL, fees, revenue and volumeAltcoin Buzz: NEAR Intents buyback hits $6.68MYahoo Finance: NEAR treasury firm CEO on buybacks and issuance
