NFT Market Cap Surges 21% to $6.3B in a Day, What is Happening?

CryptoPunks reached the heights of NFT charts by increasing the floor price by 14% and selling $14.7M in a single day.

The NFT marketplace exploded Monday, gaining over 20 percent in a day, and the overall market cap increased by 20 percent to $5.1b to $6.3b.

The sudden revival seems to be caused by renewed interest in Ethereum-based collections, after months of stagnation.

A large boost was a high-profile CryptoPunk sweep. On-chain data provided by Lookonchain shows that a new wallet, 0x1bb3, used 2,082 ETH, or approximately $5.87m, to buy 45 CryptoPunk NFTs in several hours.

The deal illuminated OpenSea, with the wallet currently containing assets worth more than 1,700 ETH, or about 6.5m.

CryptoPunks Lead Charge As Blue-Chip NFTs Fuel Market Recovery

The most successful rally was CryptoPunks, where the floor prices increased by 14 percent compared to the previous day, to reach 175,320. The rush propelled the project to the first place in the 24-hour sales leaderboard with a volume of more than 14.7m, as per CryptoSlam. It was an incredible 11,143 percent rise in daily sales.

Other Ethereum collections were not left behind. Moonbirds gained 31.1% while Pudgy Penguins jumped 2.7%. Bored Ape Yacht Club grew by 6.9 percent and niche collections such as Infynex Patron grew by 9.4 percent.

The wider increase is an indication of a change of heart as investors seem to be rotating funds back into high-value NFT assets.

ETH Dominance and Iconic Collections Are Signs of Wider Recovery

Ethereum also led with a large margin, recording 32m in NFT sales within 24 hours, a 339 percent increase. Solana, Bitcoin and BNB Chain followed with sales of between 1.3m and 2.1m, CryptoSlam data indicated.

The increase in activity is accompanied by a steep rise in wallet activity and an apparent rise in the number of buyers and sellers. In the same period, Ethereum alone had more than 5,400 buyers and 6,000 sellers in NFT marketplaces.

Although it is uncertain whether this momentum will continue, the sudden increase indicates the speed at which the sentiment in the NFT space can change. The market had been in a state of lethargy, months-long with volumes dropping and floor prices weakening in the biggest collections.

The recovery was not equal on all the platforms or blockchains. As Ethereum-based collections exploded, others such as Immutable and Polygon saw less significant increases or slight declines, demonstrating Ethereum maintaining a lead in high-value NFT transactions.

The prominent position of CryptoPunks in the recent boom demonstrates the lasting popularity of the iconic collections with cultural value, especially when large investors enter the game.

Such a sudden rise in funds and interest may be a sign of a broader market recovery. Nevertheless, even seasoned analysts advise that the NFT market is still unstable and directly related to the general trends in the cryptocurrency market.

Disclaimer: Crypto is a very risky asset class. This article is meant to be informational and not investment advice. You may lose all your capital.