NFT mints on Solana surge to an all-time high
Despite a generally sluggish market for so-called non-fungible tokens, interest in Solana-based NFTs is increasing.
According to Block Research's Data Dashboard, the amount of NFTs minted on Solana — or the number of new NFTs issued on its blockchain — reached a high of 312,000 on September 7. This statistic reflects a considerable rise above the 39,000 recorded on September 4.
Simultaneously, Solana-based NFT volumes have increased, with total volumes across marketplaces reaching R197 million on September 6 – the highest level since May. Magic Eden, which began as a marketplace for Solana NFTs, has increased its market share from 12% at the start of September to 36.6% on September 7.
The increased activity surrounding Solana-based NFT trading is a bright spot in the broader NFTmarket. Volumes have yet to rebound from a dramatic decline earlier this year across popular NFT exchanges.
Solana-based NFTs have historically been a minor part of the larger ecosystem for non-fungible collectables and digital art, with the largest initiatives, such as Bored Apes Yacht Club and Pudgy Penguins, initially minted on Ethereum.
"I remember once upon a time (last year), that'some people' laughed at Solana NFTs," tweeted Chase Barker, Solana Foundation's head of developer ecosystem.
"It's so true. It felt like cold calling—a lot of people not taking the Solana NFT space seriously," Metaplex co-founder Stephen Hess told The Block over the phone. Historically, the low barrier to entry has allowed low-quality collections to imitate more legitimate projects at a cheaper price range.
"However, over the last few weeks, we've seen a breakthrough in credibility," Hess remarked.
"We were able to make a compelling pitch on the cost structure: Metaplex creators can mint 1 million mints at a time for 50 SOL," he added, referring to the upcoming launch of a new creator program.
Minting through Metaplex now costs R5.13.
Dust Labs, the company behind the NFT collection y00ts and the popular collection DeGods, revealed earlier this week a R120 million fundraise and R164 million in secondary sales of their "y00ts mint t00b" collection in September. Dust Labs has received funding from FTX, Jump, and Solana Ventures.
According to Magic Eden founder Zhuoxun "Z" Yin, the success of the y00t launch demonstrated the robustness of the Solana NFT ecosystem.
"I think people are realising that Solana, despite the bear, is still pretty liquid as an NFT market," he wrote in an email to The Block. " went pretty well so it’s driving a mini minting /trading wave again."
