Market UpdateNFT Market Update - Week 8, 2023
The Dark Side of Blur's Second Season: Why Loyalty Could Cost Traders Dearly
NFT Market Update - Week 8, 2023
**This Market Report is Not Financial Advice, This is my Personal Opinion of the current conditions and you should Always Do Your Own Research**
Crypto Update
| ETH: $1,605 (-6.24%) | BTC: $23,249 (-6.71%) | SOL: $22.93 (-8.88%) |
So we stuck with the trend the last week has been another week of absolute craziness in the Crypto and NFT world.
Unfortunately, things are looking a bit gloomy right now as Crypto prices have taken a dip. This is largely due to Friday’s report showing increased inflation in the world's largest economy. The personal consumption expenditures price index has risen 5.4% from last year, and the core metric is up 4.7%. This news has investors worried about an increase in the continued interest rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve.
But, it's not all gloom. NFTs are still holding strong, especially on the Blur marketplace. People are buzzing with excitement after the successful season one air drop, and volume is up across the board. However, this has also caused an increase in farming and wash trading as traders prepare for the upcoming season two air drop.
Here's the catch: Blur has emphasized the importance of loyalty in season two. They've even hinted that there could be penalties for trading on other platforms. This has caused some traders to create new wallets specifically for Blur, while keeping their other trades separate. It's important to note that this increased activity has indeed attracted whales who have a lot of influence on the market. So, keep an eye out for sudden drops in prices as they can and have unloaded their bags at any time resulting in floor prices tanking rapidly.
So, let's address the elephant in the room - Blur farming and wash trading. Yeah, it might be an easy way to score some quick cash, but let's face it, it's a ticking time bomb that's about to go off! The crazy high trading volume isn't sustainable, and soon enough, everything is going to come crashing down! Blur's pool of 2 billion tokens won't last forever, and once the airdrop seasons are over, what's next? Short-term gains might seem worth it, but in the end, it's bad for the market. So, let's ask ourselves the million-dollar question - What happens when Blur's Zero Fee platform can't keep you hooked with Token drops anymore and the volume just simply isn’t there?
Moving on to other NFT trading news, we can see that degen NFTs still provide the largest opportunity for trading. However, established NFTs with a proven track record and big brands entering the space with actual Web3 innovation have the potential for success, rather than just hopping on the hype train.
Mints & News Of The Week
ByteGANs: The 1KB A.I. Art Revolution
ByteGANs have made their way onto the blockchain and are divided into three major types, representing Evolutionary Intelligence, Artificial Intelligence, and Decentralized Intelligence, respectively. SkullGANs, CyberGANs, and OctoGANs make up a third of the 1,111 available tokens each, with some rare types like Inverted types and g1itchGANs present. It's unclear why they've appeared and inscribed themselves on the blockchain. Despite the limited number of tokens, ByteGANs have seen an impressive number of transactions and generated over $7.32 million in secondary sales so far making it the most successful A.I. NFT to date. These 1111 11x11 11 frame 1 kilobyte GIFs are recorded directly on the blockchain, and the A.I. artist has made the choice of not including on-chain royalty enforcement. Each ByteGAN is 100% decentralized with no external dependencies, and they were compressed from 10mb to 1kb while keeping their signature look and dance. ByteGANs have a reductionist design and are meant to be viewed as a set, with every owner having the right to display their ByteGAN dancing with any other ByteGAN. They embody a unique combination of form, function, aesthetics, and multiple themes in AI, decentralization, and technology.
Super Puma NFTs sell out
Puma, the renowned sneaker and clothing brand, has successfully dropped another NFT for the Web3 space with their 10k Super Puma collection, which has already generated over 12,500 sales on secondary markets. Bringing in over $4.3 million in volume. The collection, inspired by the Super Puma comic book from the 1970s, has brought the brand's retro hero back to life and added a layer of storytelling to the ecosystem. This success has allowed Puma to continue to build upon their existing and new community through narrative and lore, with the reveal of their Super PUMA NFT metadata set for Tuesday, February 28th through a manual process that gamifies the decision to reveal and engages the community. Additionally, holders will have the option to crop their NFT to a PFP. The collection includes 14 Guest 1/1s from Web3 artists and 1/1s designed by Puma's internal design team, and more information about the reveal process will be shared on Monday.
YUGA-GATE: Bored Ape Kennel Club in Crisis
https://twitter.com/Jdotcolombo/status/1626538005581406208?s=20
Yuga Labs, the creator of Bored Ape Kennel Club (BAKC), is facing trouble for using an unauthorized logo. The wolf skull image used in the BAKC collection was created by Easy Drawing Guides almost three months before Yuga Labs launched the collection. The company claims to have outsourced the logo design to a freelancer without conducting any background checks. Since the revelation, Yuga Labs has contacted the freelancer and Easy Drawing Tutorials as part of the investigation, and plans to replace the logo on the BAKC website. The BAKC collection, which raised over $1 million for animal charities, was airdropped to any wallet that held Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) NFTs. However, Yuga Labs has been profiting off the collection since August 2021, and it is currently worth over $115 million in market capitalization.
Proof of Conference Event Scrapped
https://twitter.com/kevinrose/status/1627779973737238529?s=20
The Proof Collective The Proof Collective has canceled its Proof of Conference event scheduled for May due to insufficient interest, as indicated by sales data and conversations with the community. The announcement was made by co-founder Kevin Rose on Twitter, who emphasized that the decision was not taken lightly and that the team would hold smaller events for community members in the future. The cancellation has left many community members disappointed, but the Proof team has promised refunds for ticket buyers and hotel bookings. While some Moonbirds NFT holders are expressing unrest, data shows that there hasn't been a significant rush to sell the NFTs yet. The Proof Collective plans to release a more detailed update on the future of Proof and Moonbirds on March 2.
Tweet of The Week
Emojis on Trial🚀📈💰: The Battle Between NFTs and Securities Law
https://twitter.com/LisaBraganca/status/1628868429540126720?s=20
A US District Court Judge for the Southern District of New York has ruled that certain emojis including the 🚀rocket ship, 📈stock chart, and 💰money bags imply “a financial return on investment,” according to a recent court filing. The judge highlighted a series of tweets from NBA Top Shot containing emojis indicating financial gains in his ruling on the motion to dismiss the amended complaint alleging that its NBA Top Shot Moments violated security laws. Former SEC branch chief, Lisa Braganca, warned that using emojis that may indicate future gains can have potential legal consequences. However, Oscar Franklin Tan, the chief legal officer of NFT platform Enjin, argued that the decision should not create a “dangerous rule” that emojis make NFTs securities.
Web3 Uncovered YouTube Release
Weekly Top 5 NFT Markets by Volume
Weekly Top OpenSea Projects
Weekly Top 5 NFT Sales
This Weeks Notable Projects
Top Mint of The Week OpenSea Link
Top Weekly Volume Growth OpenSea Link
Top Weekly Floor Growth OpenSea Link
Top Volume This Week OpenSea Link
Conclusion
The past week was marked by a continuing trend of high volatility in the crypto and NFT market, with Crypto prices experiencing a dip following a report on inflation in the US economy. However, the NFT market remains relatively strong, with Blur marketplace seeing an increase in volume ahead of the upcoming season two airdrop. Despite the buzz, the increased farming and wash trading could lead to a short-term gain for traders but is ultimately unsustainable and could hurt the market in the long run. Among the mints and news of the week, ByteGANs have seen an impressive number of transactions, generating over $7.32 million in secondary sales. Puma's Super Puma NFT collection has generated over $4.3 million in volume and is set for the reveal on Tuesday, February 28th. However, Yuga Labs, creator of the Bored Ape Kennel Club collection, is facing trouble for using an unauthorized logo. The Proof Collective canceled its Proof of Conference event scheduled for next week. Overall, the market remains in flux, and traders should proceed with caution as they navigate the ever-changing landscape.
Disclaimer Investing in anything, whether it's stocks, crypto, or NFTs, always carries some level of risk. In fact, it's been estimated that about 99% of all NFT projects will go to zero at some point. Yikes, right? That's why it's so important to always do your own research and invest wisely.
And here are a couple of key points to keep in mind:
Not your keys, not your crypto or NFTs: This is a reminder to keep your holdings in a secure wallet if you're not actively trading. You don't want to lose access to your assets because you didn't hold the keys!
If you buy stocks, you're an investor. If you buy crypto or NFTs, you're a customer: It's important to understand the difference between these two roles, as they come with different levels of risk and potential rewards.
Finally, just a friendly reminder that my reports are for informational purposes only. They're not financial advice, and you should always do your own research and make investment decisions based on your own goals and risk tolerance.
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