As of May 2021, OpenSea closed nearly $140 million in total volume. Fast-forward a year and the most dominant non-fungible token (NFT) market secured over $880 million in less than a week, in part due to Yuga Labs’ The Otherside minting. As a result of this minting, A new wave of liquidity has been injected into the NFT ecosystem and as it stands, the current total market capitalization of NFTs exceeds $19.4 billion.
For the past two weeks, most of the market had seen little action, but this changed after the Otherside mint closed over $317 million in just three hours.
These vastly unique and randomly arranged parcels of land have amassed more than 194,000 Ether (ETH) ($536,137,000), and to the surprise of many, Yuga Labs has begun to reimburse those lost in the predictable gas wars that burned more of USD 100 million in Ether. Some holders too promoted airdropped assets valued at more than $930,000.
The price of NFTs may have slept a bit as many NFT traders chart an imminent doom for low volume projects, but the liquidity created by the Otherside sale appears to be having the opposite effect.
Investors are no longer fading top-tier NFTs
Outside of the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) and the Mutant Ape Yacht Club (MAYC), top-tier NFTs like Doodles, Azuki, CloneX, and Meebits have seen some notable increases in volume over the last seven days.
Meebits saw a nearly 167% increase in total sales volume and a 19% increase in average selling price after Yuga Labs announced plans to develop the Metaverse utility for Meebits.
Meebits volume started to decline in late April and saw an uptick from early May. The average selling price has increased by 15% and the volume has grown by more than 65% in the last seven days.
It appears that NFT traders who have abandoned certain NFT ecosystems are reaping their profits and investing again in upgrading their collection with top-notch NFTs.
Following a similar trajectory to Azuki, NFT Doodles have seen a nearly 250% increase in volume over the past seven days. The price floor has also risen steadily since the beginning of May and is currently at 23 Ether ($65,458).
One clear trend is that the most recent capital infusion is driving up the prices of blue-chip NFTs, leaving the rest of the market, dominated by PFPs, to fall. Could this be the start of Gary Vee’s speculation that 99% of the collections will go to zero, leaving only the top 1% with value?
RTFKT Studios’ CloneX NFTs have also been riding high. Just a week ago, the price floor hovered around the 16.5 Ether to 17.5 Ether range, but now it sits at 19.7 Ether.
This price increase could be attributed to the reveal of MNLTH NFTs which represent Nike’s first blockchain-powered sneaker with mod and forge capabilities (meaning it can be created to be worn in real life).
Along with the new sneakers, the owners received a jar that represented the first “skin” and upon revealing the MNLTHs, the NFTs were burned to mint the MNLTH 2, which is another mystery box. So the journey continues with the RTFKT studios and their ecosystem.
Although Ethereum-based NFTs have been given the limelight compared to projects on other blockchains, OpenSea’s recent support for Solana NFTs is leveling the playing field.
Does Solana implement more strings?
Traders with little or no exposure to Solana can now interact with the NFT ecosystem as OpenSea has added support for the chain. While Solana investors are adamant about using Solana’s Magic Eden market, other traders are thrilled with the new option.
One Solana project making waves is Okay Bears, which is the first Solana NFT blockchain to rank in the top 5 of OpenSea’s volume charts. Costing 83 SOL ($7,111), Okay Bears has sparked some controversy regarding its quality and value. As some NFT influencers changed their profile picture to show off the Okay Bears, the project’s overall volume shot up over 34% in the last seven days, but continues to level off.
The success of Okay Bears has investors calling for another “Solana Summer” and the Catalina Whale Mixer NFTs are also making waves at OpenSea.
Despite the fact that the project was launched in December 2021, the influencers and key players of NFT are going back to when they first got involved in the project, and since then they have made huge sales and remarkable profits.
Catalina Whale 2291
SOLD! POW POW → 500.00 SOL ($49,080.00 USD)
https://t.co/RB7j7udX3nWelcome to the fucking Catalina Whale Mixer!
https://t.co/p2av2TxZ5y
https://t.co/m74Kf8NNZL pic.twitter.com/FkKQjKjT3v— Catalina Whale Mixer Sales Bot (@WhaleBouncer) April 28, 2022
Currently, 12 Solana NFT projects are on OpenSea’s top 100 list by total volume and this could indicate that the average NFT collector might be branching out across blockchains.
DeGods NFTs are among the top 40 NFT collections by total volume on OpenSea. Self-described as a deflationary collection of misfits, punks, and degenerates, DeGods’ minimum price currently stands at 310 SOL ($27,190) on OpenSea and 245 SOL ($20,851) on Magic Eden.
Data from Magic Eden shows that DeGods saw a 179% increase in minimum price in April and a late rise can be seen in OpenSea.
As top-tier NFTs like BAYC and CloneX have set the standard when it comes to brand value and community rewards, investors seem to be betting on these collections.
It’s important pointing that, While proof-of-profile NFTs have seen slow volume, other types of music, literary, and membership-based NFTs are emerging. Ethereum NFTs have clearly cemented their mark on history; but other blockchains with NFT projects are also emerging.
The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph.com. All investment and commercial movement involves risk, you must do your own research when making a decision.