In a remarkable turn of events, the Bitcoin NFTs market witnessed a significant shift in dynamics last month, as Bitcoin emerged as the dominant force, stealing the spotlight from traditional players like Ethereum, Solana, and Polygon.
The rise of Bitcoin in the NFT space was nothing short of extraordinary, as it accounted for more than half of the total monthly NFT sales.
Data sourced from CryptoSlam reveals that sales of Bitcoin NFTs experienced an unprecedented surge, reaching an all-time high of over $880 million in December alone.
This surge not only surpassed the performance of established blockchain platforms but also signaled a profound shift in the preferences of NFT enthusiasts and investors.
Bitcoin NFTs Dominate The Competition
The surge in Bitcoin NFTs was accompanied by a staggering increase in the number of participants within the market. Both buyers and sellers flocked to the NFT ecosystem, with a remarkable 140% spike in activity.
More than 9,000 buyers and 10,000 sellers enthusiastically entered the market, contributing to the overall vibrancy and diversity of the Bitcoin-centric NFT space.
BTC market cap currently at $844.795 billion. Chart: TradingView.com
Ethereum saw a decrease in NFT sales, falling by 16% to reach $350 million, but Bitcoin continued to dominate. On the other hand, Solana experienced a noteworthy 250% expansion, while its overall revenue still lagged below that of Ethereum and Bitcoin.
In the current spike in Bitcoin’s NFT sales, Ordinals have become crucial. With the release of this new technology in September 2022, users will be able to directly engrave digital content, such as pictures, films, and music, onto the Bitcoin blockchain.
In the first two months, more than 13,000 Ordinals transactions were executed, using up 526MB of Bitcoin blockspace, according to BitMEX.
Source: Dune Analytics
Bitcoin Network Hits One-Day Peak In Fees
As a result of the increased activity, the Bitcoin network reached a one-day high on December 17 of $10 million in fees paid to mint inscriptions on the blockchain, according to statistics from Dune Analytics.
A digital replica of Vincent Van Gogh’s 1888 self-portrait (Van Gogh painting #216), which sold for $1.19 million, was the most valuable NFT transaction in December. Prior sales of #132 and #283, two further pieces from the same series, brought in $1.3 million and $1.27 million, respectively.
Source: CryptoSlam
Although global NFT sales reached a remarkable $1.7 billion this month, this figure is still far lower than its record of $5.5 billion in August 2021.
Proponents like Michael Saylor, the co-founder of MicroStrategy, and Udi Wertheimer, who developed Bitcoin, support Ordinals as a means of enhancing Bitcoin’s durability.
Source: NFTGo
Not everyone in the Bitcoin community, though, concurs. Developer Luke Dashjr for Bitcoin Core contends that these inscriptions take advantage of a flaw in the data size restriction, which could result in network spam.
The last few weeks have seen a pullback in NFT sales activity on the general market, notwithstanding the considerable activity on the Bitcoin network. NFT sales volume and market value have decreased over the past seven days, according to data from NFTGo.
Featured image from Freepik
