Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) began December on an impressive note, racking up $187 million in weekly sales volume in the first week. With the move, the digital arts sustained a move that has been registering since the first week of October. Notably, the push is being led by Ethereum NFTs, with the move having a lasting effect on its price.
The assets registered the best opening week in a while, leapfrogging November where it witnessed $181 million in sales volume. NFT volumes dipped slightly in March, with the bearish momentum continuing across months to reach September.
In September, NFTs recorded a worse monthly volume that hasn’t been seen since 2021. However, the assets fortune changed in October, recovering from the bearish returns of the previous months. The momentum was also sustained in November, registering a huge $562 million sales volume.
Ethereum ranks top in NFT sales
Ethereum led the other blockchains in NFT sales over the last week, racking up $92 million. The surge signifies an increase of 44.69% from the previous week and was led by the Pudgy Penguins and CryptoPunks projects, with both posting strong performances across the week. CryptoSlam data shows that Pudgy Penguins recorded sales of $25 million during the week, signifying a 346% rise from the previous week.
According to DefiLlama, the floor price of the Ethereum-based NFT collection also increased drastically, moving from 13 ETH on November 30 to around 21 ETH on December 8. CryptoPunks came in second place in sales, with a weekly sale volume of $16.5 million. The price of the NFT collection rose to 44 ETH on December 4, before dropping slightly to 40 ETH, worth around $160,000 as of December 8. Bitcoin-based NFTs were also on show, following Ethereum NFTs in second place.
Ethereum’s price rally above $4,000
The surge in the sales of Ethereum NFTs coincided with the Ether’s price breaking above the $4,000 mark. Ethereum achieved the remarkable feat, hitting a new price at $4,067 on Dec 6. ETH closed the first week of December with a 40% surge, making it the first time in 10 months. Although the upswing has been tied to the wider market rally influenced by Bitcoin, analysts think other things are at play.
The first instance is the impressive demands that have trailed Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs), with Bloomberg reporting it saw inflows of $428 million on Thursday alone. The surge in ETF demand underscores the wider perception of the product, and especially the huge belief in Ethereum as the Trump administration prepares to take the reins.
Since the election, Ethereum has outperformed Bitcoin, seeing a huge 61% increase in its value. The appointment of Paul Atkins as the new Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman has also ignited optimism, owing to his pro-crypto stance.
Finally, the market believes that the altseason is already here, with analysts pushing Ethereum to take over from Bitcoin. Analysts feel that since Bitcoin has hit $100k, it is time for Ethereum to show what it’s got. Although Ethereum is still below its all-time high at $4,878, traders can still take in profit from its present surge.
The derivatives market has also seen increased ETH appeal, with open interests in Ether Futures contract on CME moving ahead of Bitcoin Futures. With most traders already satisfied with their investments in Bitcoin ETFs, analysts believe that they may look at Ethereum as a closely regulated substitute.
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