BNB has surged to a new all-time high of $962 on September 17, 2025, pushing its market capitalization to approximately $133 billion and reclaiming its position as the fifth-largest cryptocurrency by market value. This milestone places BNB ahead of traditional financial institutions like UBS Group, ranking it as the 165th largest global asset.
The rally gained significant momentum following reports that Binance is close to securing a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), effectively ending a long-running investigation into compliance violations, money laundering concerns, and regulatory breaches. This development removes a major regulatory overhang that had previously weighed on investor confidence.
Additional factors contributing to the surge include speculation about the potential return of founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) to Binance in a new role, as well as a recently announced partnership with asset management giant Franklin Templeton. The collaboration aims to expand tokenized real-world asset (RWA) markets through BNB Chain, highlighting the ecosystem's growing institutional credibility. Analysts project the RWA industry could reach $10 trillion in the coming years.
On-chain metrics show robust growth, with daily transactions ranging between 10-14 million and daily active addresses doubling since April 2025. The network now hosts over 5,800 decentralized applications, with total value locked (TVL) reaching $7.6 billion and weekly DEX volume hitting $16 billion.
Technical analysis reveals BNB trading in the upper Bollinger Band range with strong support at $920. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) near 70 indicates strong momentum though approaching overbought conditions. Derivatives data shows open interest increased by 8.26% to $2.29 billion while funding rates have spiked down, creating room for further upward movement according to analysts like Saint Pump, who predicts a push toward $1,000 before any significant pullback.
However, traders warn of potential sharp corrections over the weekend, noting that deep pullbacks often follow major breakouts before uptrends resume. Some market participants are rotating from Ethereum to "less overheated" assets like BNB and SOL, potentially adding further buying pressure.