NFT Sales See Nearly 90% Dip as Buyers Demands Shift

NFT sales have fallen by 90% from their May 3 peak as buyers switch their preferences in the type of collectibles they purchase. What’s more, market activity suggests that the demand for NFTs could in fact be cooling down. Last week NFTs made a mere $19.4 million in sales, a massive drop compared to $170 million sales recorded earlier in May. The number of wallets engaged in the daily trading of NFTs has also decreased by 70%.

NFT Sales Saw Record Surge Early May

Digital artist Beeple set the collectibles market buzzing on March 11, when he sold a Non-Fungible Token of his masterpiece, titled “Everdays: The First 5000 days”, for a whopping $69 million at a Christie’s auction.

The sale generated immense interest in NFTs, leading to the peak of May 3, when the collectibles market recorded $102 million in sales. According to market data, during the seven days that preceded and followed May 3, NFTs witnessed $170 million in transactions.

However, that number plummeted by almost 90% in the last week to $19.4 million. The number of NFT wallets engaged in daily transactions also fell from 12,000 in early May to 3,900.

Digital Art Sales Decline as Buyers Demands Change

The recent decline in the sale of collectibles is indicative of a larger shift in buyer demand. Interest in digital art NFTs is waning while buyer demand for digital real estate and collectibles based on the metaverse is growing. Sales data from last week reveals that digital art made $3 million in NFT sales. Meanwhile, metaverse NFTs fared better with $3.3 million in sales.

NFTs have drawn a number of detractors since gaining popularity. Most notable among them is Ethereum co-founder, Anthony Di Iorio, who believes the market is saturated and there are many projects he didn’t “find very sexy at all.”

NFT Market May Still Have Potential

An early Bitcoin adopter, Di Iorio feels NFTs are “not interesting”. But he thinks, “over the next few years, we’ll really see how it does provide value.”

Despite the declining sales and a bearish outlook, the NFT market may still have potential. 

In a discussion with Bloomberg TV on May 24, Guggenheim cofounder Todd Morley talked about his “blockchain tower” project that will provide anyone in New York City with access to wireless trading, a way to demonstrate new technological advances and store the world’s largest NFT collection.