The market for non-fungible tokens (NFTs) is witnessing a significant downturn in sales around the world. The most recent data by Cryptoslam showed that the average sale prices of NFTs have slipped by nearly 60 percent between March and June this year. The average price of an NFT around March was $193 (roughly Rs. 16,100), whereas in June, the price sunk to $79.17 (roughly Rs. 6,604).
Cryptoslam stats show NFT market status
As per CryptoSlam, The average NFT sale price dropped 59.11 percent in the second quarter of 2024, compared to the first quarter. The total sales volume, too, fell sharply — down from $1,604,580,523.51 (please add INR conversion) in March 2024 to $462,260,209.09 (please add INR conversion) in June. The number of unique NFT buyers, on the other hand, stood at 10,83,490 around March this year, but the figure reduced to 9,98,138 in June.
Meanwhile, the number of unique NFT sellers tumbled from 6,75,306 in March to 4,75,999 in June. The figures clearly indicate that the NFT market is undergoing a significant downfall with only a few collections managing to attract buyers.
The Pizza BRC-20 NFTs, built atop the Bitcoin blockchain, has topped CryptoSlam’s list of NFT collections that have seen a rise in sales volume over the last 30 days. DMarket, Crypto Punks, and Gods Unchained Cards secured the second, third, and fourth rankings, respectively, on the list.
The NFT market has seen multiple ups and downs over the last few years. Between 2022 and 2023, international celebrities like Justin Bieber, Snoop Dogg, and Paris Hilton among others spent thousands of dollars on purchasing trendy digital collectibles while multiple renowned brands like Lufthansa Airlines and Casio Watch added NFTs to their rewards programmes and metaverse initiatives.
Around December 2023, the hype around BTC ETFs in the US had added more buzz to the NFT market – but that was clearly short lived.
As per the latest data, in January this year, the average price of an NFT was $109 (roughly Rs. 9,096) but as of July 2, the a4verage NFT price has fallen to $92.11 (roughly Rs. 7,687).
It remains unclear if and when the NFT market would see any improvements given that their categorisation as digital assets or securities remains a debated topic in several nations.
Recent developments in NFT arena
NFTs are digital collectibles that are built on blockchain networks and can be inspired by an array of things like game characters, artists, drawings, cartoons, and even video content. The buyer of an NFT gets complete ownership and can choose to hold it, trade it, or sell it. Often, NFTs are loaded with virtual benefits and rewards from brands, gaming ecosystems, and artists.
In April 2024, Samsung partnered with Wilder World metaverse game to offer NFT rewards to the buyers of its Web3 TV bundle packs.
In India, the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) unveiled NFT tickets for Lucknow to Delhi train travel as Holi-themed digital souvenirs.
In fact, Japanese tech giant Sony is trying to create a new category of NFTs, called SuperNFTs, that are created when players of its gaming ecosystem combine all their in-game NFTs into one entity. Several brands like Nike and Adidas have reworked their marketing strategies to include NFTs as a way to connect with a younger customer base.