The NFT market was at its highest level since May 2022, according to this month’s data. The market is recovering from the crypto crashes of last year. The crypto bull market came to an end in May 2022 with the Terra-LUNA crash. Following that, NFT trading volume and sales fell.
This year, the launch of Blur has dominated NFT market conversation. Its expansion has been contested, with some alleging unusual wash trading. According to CoinGecko, wash trade in February 2023 rose 126% from $250 million in January. The “unadjusted trading volume” of the six largest marketplaces was 23.4% wash trade. Many markets offered prizes for trading volume. Blur’s wash trade tripled in the month following the $BLUR airdrop.
According to DappRadar, Silicon Valley Bank’s insolvency impacted NFT prices. Yet, “the comeback was quick, demonstrating the resilience of these top-tier NFTs,” according to the source.
Rarible Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer Alex Salnikov anticipates a number of obstacles for the company in 2023. These turbulent times haven’t helped NFTs’ stigma, which is impeding growth. Salnikov told BeInCrypto, “The general public is still sceptical of NFTs, and as we’ve seen, numerous mainstream firms are deciding to refrain from using the phrase ‘NFT’ and instead employing terminology like ‘digital collectible’ to appeal to the masses.
Examples include Reddit’s “Collection Avatars,” Dapper Labs’ NBA Top Shots, and Candy Digital’s MLB and Odd Things collaborations.
During the bull run, large brands wanted to experiment with NFTs, he added. This year, Meta put a halt to Web3 projects. These brands will be back. Web3 plans are a large endeavor that many businesses do not have the time or resources to undertake in this industry.
Amazon has revealed its NFT ambitions. This is just a blip as major brands migrate to AI and other revenue streams. Aside from that, the NFT market is being impacted by centralized marketplace battles. Markets are becoming disoriented as traders treat NFTs like tokens. “Artists, creators, and their communities are the most important,” Salnikov says.
J.D. Lasica, CEO and co-founder of Amberfi, a Web3 startup that will launch Expressions, a creators-centric marketplace, in April, feels the industry is growing. Despite minor setbacks, optimism prevails. “We live in a sector that measures time in minutes and seconds rather than months,” he said.
The NFT market should grow slowly but steadily over the next year for two reasons. NFTs extend beyond monkey jpegs into fashion, retail, banking, real estate, and other important industries. Increasingly digitally savvy collectors will desire cool digital gear to accent their online lives, and businesses and creators will be happy to provide.”
