BNB Surges on Institutional Demand, Chain Upgrades

Binance Coin (BNB) has surged above $800 to new all-time highs, with its market capitalization surpassing $111 billion and briefly overtaking Solana as the fifth-largest cryptocurrency. The rally is fueled by substantial institutional adoption, including Windtree Therapeutics' plans to purchase up to $700 million in BNB and Nano Labs' acquisition of 120,000 tokens worth about $90 million. On-chain activity has surged, with DEX volumes rising 400% and daily transactions on the BNB Chain tripling, reflecting strong user growth. Technical upgrades to the BNB Chain, such as faster block times and ambitions to reach 20,000 transactions per second by 2026, are further supporting optimism. Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao celebrated the achievement, suggesting it may signal the start of a broader 'altcoin season.' Analysts, including Standard Chartered, predict that BNB could surpass $2,700 by 2028, though overbought conditions are noted in the short term.