NFTs are trending, and they are trending big. After their big upsurge near the end of 2017, NFTs are making a robust comeback. The rise of the NFTs is so strong that they are successfully making their presence felt in a market where Bitcoin is having a dream bull-run, Ethereum is on the verge of a much-anticipated upgrade, and the total value locked in DeFi applications is at a momentous high.
NFT stands for Non-Fungible Token. It is an umbrella term that represents digital assets of both tangible and intangible varieties. NFTs include collectible sports cards, virtual real estate, or even digital sneakers.
No two NFTs are identical, even if they exist on the same platform. Their distinctiveness is what makes them unique and valuable. The fact that they are not interchangeable is what has been helping them grow at a rapid pace.
The Recent Growth of NFTs Explained
In 2020, the total trading volume of NFTs surpassed $250 million. Compared to 2019, it registered a remarkable growth of 400%. While in 2020, the entire crypto and blockchain industry witnessed a significant upsurge on the back of Bitcoin’s astounding bull run, the growth of NFTs was driven by factors inherent to their distinct qualities.
Experts studying the trajectory of NFTs noted that the boom in the NFT industry started before Bitcoin’s bull run. The fact that each NFT is distinguishable from the other, not only makes it easily verifiable but also makes fake circulation nearly impossible.
Each NFT can be traceable back to its original issuer. They are indivisible and indestructible. These features of NFTs make them lucrative, especially in the field of artwork and collectibles. The Ethereum NFT marketplace – OpenSea – that sells digital Art and collectibles registered more than $52 million of trading volume in January 2020.
How Much Have NFTs Grown in Popularity?
Not only OpenSea, but there are also at least three other Ethereum NFT marketplaces that registered more than a million dollars worth of trading volume in the last 30 days:
- SuperRare.co, an NFT marketplace that collects and sells unique, single-edition digital artworks, witnessed almost $20 million worth of trading volume in the last 30 days.
- Rarible, selling digital collectibles secured via blockchain, saw a trading volume of more than $12 million in the last 30 days.
- Axie Marketplace, the official digital marketplace for the game Axie Infinity also turned over more than a million dollars over the period of the last 30 days.
If we look at the overall market of NFTs, including artwork and game collectibles, it reached $338 million in market capitalization in 2020.
The Future of NFTs
Experts believe that apart from being something that is one of its kind, the interest in digital items issued by household brands such as the NBA, Nike, or Formula 1 is making the NFT industry grow at an exponential pace.
The more such brands come into the scene, the more NFTs will witness growth. Yet, novelty or relatability is not the only return that NFT investors are seeking. Like other investments, NFTs are also offering profits. A combination of robust returns and a sense of association and common interest among buyers and issuers draw a promising path for NFTs in the future.
To demonstrate the hype surrounding NFTs, an auction for “Block 21,” a digital portrait of bitcoin inventor Satoshi Nakamoto, sold for $131,250—10 times its estimated value. The sale took place in October of 2020, signaling the rise of NFT popularity—and demand.
Do you think NFTs will become a major part of the crypto world in the long run? Let us know in the comments below.
The post NFT Trading Volume has Grown 400% Since 2019 appeared first on The Tokenist.
