The NEAR Protocol stands to be a scalable and user-friendly proof-of-stake (PoS) network, built to compete with the blockchain goliath Ethereum. NEAR is also the native coin for the NEAR chain and functions as the gas and governance token of the network.
Following the recent launch of NEAR’s stablecoin, USN, many crypto investors have been finding ways to earn interest on NEAR. In this guide, we compare different crypto lending platforms, their differing interest rates, and how to find the best NEAR interest account for you.
Best NEAR Interest Rates Compared
NEAR interest rates will vary from platform to platform, together with the terms and conditions to achieve the highest rates. Annual percentage yield (APY) is the measure used for the earnings made through crypto lending—it’s the yearly yield with the interest compounded daily.
We’ve summarized below some NEAR interest account rates alongside the requirements for their best rates to make it easy to compare.
Best NEAR Interest Accounts Reviewed
NEAR Collective is the team behind the NEAR Protocol and has recently raised $350 million for the growth of its ecosystem and many crypto projects. As we touched on earlier, NEAR has also released its very own decentralized and staking stablecoin, USN, to increase its decentralized finance (DeFi) presence.
Although you can make money on the price action of the NEAR coin, you might also want to earn passively by storing the tokens in a NEAR interest account. Let’s go through some of these platforms that let you earn interest on NEAR.
1. Binance – Earn The Highest Interest On NEAR At A Lockup Period
From the platforms we reviewed, you can earn the most interest on NEAR with Binance at 21.80% APY. For this level of yield, a 90 day lockup period is required wherein redeeming or unsubscribing from this fixed period of interest will remove all earnings gained from the term.
There’s also a cap to how many NEAR coins you can earn with the 90 day plan which is at 25 NEAR. However, the maximum amount for lending is much higher for Binance’s lower lockup earnings plans and flexible plan.
Multiple Savings Options
If you’re looking to hold a small investment of NEAR coins for three months or more, then you can benefit from a crypto savings account, Binance offers a 90-day lockup term. Otherwise, you could try their other NEAR earnings plans that we’ve listed here:
- 60 Days NEAR Locked Staking – 16.23% APY for up to 10,000 NEAR
- 30 Days NEAR Locked Staking – 12.79% APY for up to 30,000 NEAR
- NEAR Flexible Savings – 3.00% APY for the first 0-20 NEAR tokens
Regulations & Availability
Having been banned in the United States back in 2019, Binance was perceived to be a crypto outlaw as many investors thought that strict regulations would kill Binance’s business. Despite this, Binance has grown tremendously and bounced back in the US with its new platform, Binance.US. They continue to be one of the largest crypto companies in the world.
Today, only the crypto exchange and crypto wallet are available for Binance accounts based in the US, so you won’t be able to earn interest on NEAR with Binance.US.
Cons
Cryptoassets are a highly volatile unregulated investment product. No UK or EU investor protection.
2. Nexo – Earn Interest on NEAR Paid Out Daily
Nexo is one of the leading digital assets lending institutions and lets you earn interest on NEAR at up to 12% APY. The Nexo platform’s native token, NEXO, will be essential in getting the highest interest rates, lending discounts, and other rewards which we’ll explain more in this section.
Although you can start earning NEAR interest with Nexo without much restrictions, there are a few conditions that need to be met if you want to earn at their highest rate. These requirements are:
- Be Platinum-loyalty tier by having 10% of your Nexo portfolio in NEXO (at least $1,000 worth)
- Have your crypto interest earnings paid in NEXO tokens
- Subscribe to the one month lockup period
The NEAR coin is just one of the 34 different cryptocurrencies that you can earn interest on with Nexo. Some of these cryptocurrencies are Bitcoin, Ethereum, and NEXO.
Protection & Regulation
A total of $375 million in digital assets are covered by Nexo and their high-class crypto security partners such as BitGo, Ledger, and Bakkt. They boast a military-level digital assets security with their crypto vaults as well as hold licenses from various global financial jurisdictions.
Nexo Earn, Nexo’s crypto interest earning product, is not available in the US. This means that US-based accounts will not be able to earn interest on NEAR and other crypto for now. Despite this, it’s still a good sign that all of Nexo’s other products are still available in the United States. They’ve made sure to comply with the local regulations and are looking to make all their products available in the future.
Membership Rewards
You can support the Nexo ecosystem by buying and holding NEXO tokens which unlock different membership tiers based on how much NEXO you hold. The benefits as you go up these membership levels are: higher discounts for borrowing crypto, more free crypto withdrawals per month, and higher cashback rates from their crypto exchange.
Not including the base membership level, there are three loyalty tiers at Nexo—Silver, Gold, and Platinum.
Cons
Cryptoassets are a highly volatile unregulated investment product. No UK or EU investor protection.
How to Earn Interest on NEAR
Ready to learn how to earn interest on NEAR with our top-listed platform? Follow these simple steps below to start with Binance.
Step 1: Create An Account On Binance
To create an account on Binance, head to their website and tap on ‘Register’ located at the top right. Then, provide either your email, phone number, or Apple ID to start the registration. Binance will send verification codes via email and SMS for you to input to finish your account creation.
Step 2: Complete Account Verification
Next, you’ll need to fully verify your Binance account by uploading a valid ID, usually a driver’s license or passport. You’ll be given some instructions regarding uploading these clear documents as well as taking a current photo to complete the verification process.
Step 3: Add NEAR Coins
With your account fully verified, you can start adding NEAR to your account to start earning. Binance offers several different methods of funding like peer-to-peer trading, bank transfer, and third-party payment. Place your cursor over the ‘Buy Crypto’ button from your account dashboard, choose how you want to fund your account, and successfully deposit NEAR.
Step 4: Earn Interest On NEAR
Back on the dashboard, place your cursor on the ‘Earn’ button and click on ‘Binance Earn’. Enter ‘NEAR’ on the search bar and you’ll see the different subscriptions available on the NEAR token. Click on the 90 day Locked Staking option, load up to 25 NEAR, and click ‘Confirm’ to start earning interest on NEAR.
Is Earning Interest on NEAR a Good Investment?
From last year, NEAR is up over 160% at $13 and has peaked in price at around $20. As we touched on earlier, the NEAR Collective has been recently funded, has just released a new decentralized stablecoin in USN, and is now poised to grow as more users adopt the NEAR network.
If you have idle NEAR coins in your crypto accounts or are looking to support the NEAR blockchain and ecosystem by buying and holding NEAR, then earning interest on NEAR will be beneficial to your strategy.
NEAR Interest vs Staking
Similar to other PoS chains like the Algorand and Avalanche, NEAR holders can earn rewards through crypto staking process. Staking the coins themselves will yield the highest earnings but requires some advanced technical knowledge and equipment to successfully run at a moderate risk.
The most practical solution to earning interest on NEAR would be to store the tokens in a crypto lending platform so that the platform can earn the rewards for you. With the right crypto interest accounts, conditions, and rates, you’ll be able to earn a substantial amount from NEAR without the risks of staking it yourself.
Aqru – Overall Best Crypto Interest Platform
AQRU remains as our best overall platform for earning interest on crypto despite not yet supporting NEAR coins. They’ve got some of the best rates for the top cryptocurrencies and stablecoins and they operate as a fully regulated platform.
Specifically, storing Bitcoin or Ethereum in an AQRU interest earning account gives 7% APY while other platforms only offer half that amount for those coins. On stablecoins, AQRU lets you earn a whopping 12% APY. This rate is applicable to Tether (USDT), USD Coin (USDC), and Dai (DAI).
If that wasn’t enough, AQRU offers these attractively high rates at fully flexible terms, meaning you can withdraw your cryptocurrencies along with the earnings rewards at any time. No unnecessary and confusing membership tiers or lending brackets to worry about—simply earn on your cryptocurrencies.
Given that the up-and-coming NEAR coin is not available on AQRU, we still believe that anyone will benefit from AQRU’s incredible rates, accommodating holding terms, and of course, their top-level regulation and security. $30 million worth of digital assets in AQRU are insured and are overcollateralized when being lent to institutions and retail investors.
In the AQRU platform, you can earn interest on Ethereum and Bitcoin at a very high 7% APY. No need to worry about lockup terms or holding other tokens for the maximum rewards. At AQRU, the interest earning account is flexible, so you can claim your earnings any time.
If you want to earn interest on stablecoins, AQRU gives 12% APY for Tether, USD Coin, and Dai. There are no fees for crypto and bank transfers, no fees for buying crypto, and no fees for withdrawing fiat currency from your AQRU account.
Despite not having one of the most popular cryptocurrencies this year in NEAR, AQRU still has plenty to bring on the table. If you’ve dabbled in crypto investing before, you may even have some coins that AQRU uses to earn. With $30 million worth of crypto stored in AQRU insured and the platform fully regulated, we believe that the platform stands to benefit most, if not, all investors.
Cryptoassets are a highly volatile unregulated investment product. No UK or EU investor protection.
Conclusion
The best NEAR interest account for you depends on your NEAR investing strategy which would include how much you want to be earning, your time frame, and several other factors. From this review, we found that Binance offers the highest APY at 21.80%, making it a great option if you want to hold for three months and are okay with the 25 NEAR coin lending restriction.
If you want to support Nexo and have a shorter time frame for earning on your NEAR coins, then you’ll be earning up to 12% APY on the Nexo platform. Make sure to hold enough NEXO in your portfolio so you can maximize the rewards and earnings rate.
Finally, we have to bring up how NEAR is still a volatile cryptocurrency and any drastic fall in price can erase your interest earnings from any platform. Diversification is key to mitigating risks, so earning interest from established cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum as well as consistent stablecoins lets you hedge against riskier digital assets.
To make the most out of your Bitcoin, Ethereum and stablecoin earnings, we recommend AQRU, the overall best platform for earning crypto interest. The fully regulated platform offers 12% APY on USDT, USDC, and DAI and 7% APY on Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Looking to start earning on your idle cryptocurrencies with AQRU? Enjoy the highest interest rates, flexible terms, and top-level crypto protection with them. Click on the link below and create an AQRU account today.
Cryptoassets are a highly volatile unregulated investment product. No UK or EU investor protection.