After weeks of headlines proclaiming the death of NFTs and quoting low floor prices, we have seen a shift in the market, having witnessed a stealthy increase in trading volumes and floor prices over the past month.
This positive turn in the NFT market can be set against the wider crypto landscape, where there has been a spike in trading and value. We’ve seen notable price gains, including Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), which have both increased by more than 30% in value from the last month. This rise in crypto prices is kickstarting a knock-on effect and driving interest and value across the NFT market.
Some of the most recognisable projects, like the Bored Apes, Crypto Punks and Azukis have all risen in price by 67%, 82% and 107% respectively. Of the top 50 projects, all but two have risen in value over the last month.
The crypto landscape is hot, which means not only that more NFTs are being sold and bought, trades are worth more, as they are anchored in a currency rising in value, and the actual prices have gone up.
However, while this is exciting, encouraging, and even predictable for some, it’s important to contextualise these changes in the market. While there have been significant returns for some projects and currencies alike, they are still short of market peaks just a year or two ago. For instance, while we are seeing a spike in NFT trading volume, which reached $405 million in October, this is a paltry sum compared to the 2022 January peak of $5 billion.
We may not be back to, or ever get back to the peaks we saw in 2021-22, but it is exciting to see this movement. And for some NFT holders, this market turn could be rewarding.
So what do you think? Is this the start of the next bull run? Or the last hurrah of the 2021 boom?