The NEAR Foundation has appointed Mert Mumtaz, CEO of Solana infrastructure provider Helius, to its board of directors. Mumtaz will contribute to product strategy, ecosystem growth, and governance initiatives, bringing prior experience as an early user of NEAR Intents. NEAR Intents has recorded over $33 billion in cumulative trading volume, with total value locked in private transactions exceeding $160 million. The protocol recently addressed a $3.8 million exploit targeting its deposit and withdrawal infrastructure in early October, confirming the vulnerability has been patched and full compensation will be provided to affected users.