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NFTs hit $158M weekly sales, Sky Mavis lays off 21% of workforce: Nifty Newsletter

NFTs recorded a weekly sales volume of $158 million, showing a strong weekly performance compared to the start of November.

In this week’s newsletter, read about how non-fungible token (NFT) sales have continued their upward momentum, and find out why Sky Mavis, the company behind Axie Infinity, laid off 21% of its workforce. In other news, crypto exchange Kraken is winding down its NFT marketplace and FIFA and Mythical Games will collaborate on a blockchain game. 

NFTs continued to show strong weekly sales, recording $158 million in Nov. 18–24. While the data shows a 12.7% decrease compared to the previous week, the volume remained above its levels at the beginning of November. From Nov. 4–10, the weekly sales volume was only $93 million.

NFTs are also on track to end November on a strong note. In October, NFTs recorded $356 million in sales. Meanwhile, November had already recorded a volume of more than $400 million. 

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NFT weekly sales surge 94%, McDonald’s partners with Doodles: Nifty Newsletter

NFTs continue to recover as weekly sales volumes hit $181 million, surging 94% week-on-week. 

In this week’s newsletter, read about non-fungible token (NFT) sales volume’s continued recovery with a 94% surge week-on-week, check out McDonald’s new partnership with NFT project Doodles for its online promotion called “GM Spread Joy,” and, in other news, former professional basketball player Shaquille O’Neal settled an Astral NFTs lawsuit for $11 million. 

NFT sales volumes rebounded as Bitcoin and other crypto markets rallied. In the week to Nov. 17, digital collectibles surged by 94%, recording a sales volume of $181 million across different blockchains. 

Ethereum, Bitcoin and Solana led the surge. Ethereum recorded an NFT sales volume of $67 million for the week, while Bitcoin had $60 million and Solana had $26 million. 

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NFT monthly sales surge 18%, Mutant Ape ripoff creator avoids prison: Nifty Newsletter

NFTs have started to recover as monthly sales volumes surged by 18% and total transactions shot up to 7.2 million.

In this week’s newsletter, read about the creator of the Mutant Ape Planet non-fungible tokens (NFTs) avoiding prison, check out how NFTs recovered from a recent market slump and find out how the NFT trading platform OpenSea plans to make a comeback.

While the Mutant Ape Planet creator Aurelien Michel pleaded guilty to defrauding investors, a judge sentenced the French national to the one-month lockup he had already served. Michel was also ordered to forfeit $1.4 million from the almost $3 million he got from selling ripoff NFTs. Michel, who admitted on social media to pulling the rug on investors, must also pay a $15,000 fine. 

Federal prosecutors had pursued a 37-month prison term for Michel, arguing that he and his associates intentionally failed to deliver their promises to the collection’s community. 

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$1.5M CryptoPunk bought for $23K, Coinbase’s NFT legal defense fund: Nifty Newsletter

Pudgy Penguins CEO Luca Schnetzler believes the SEC’s actions against NFTs are nonsense, describing them as a “nothing burger.” 

In this week’s newsletter, read about how a trader acquired a high-end piece from the CryptoPunks non-fungible token (NFT) collection for only 10 Ether (ETH) and how crypto exchange Coinbase is supporting NFTs with a legal defense fund. Check out how two United States Securities and Exchange Commission commissioners reacted when the government agency fined a restaurant $750,000 for selling NFTs.

In other news, the blockchain advocacy organization Digital Chamber supported a newly introduced bill to properly define NFTs and exempt some from securities laws. Meanwhile, the CEO of NFT collection Pudgy Penguins described the SEC’s actions against the NFT space as nonsense. 

A crypto trader found a way to take ownership of a fractionalized CryptoPunk NFT by triggering a buyout feature in the smart contracts of a defunct platform that splits NFT ownership. The NFT collector proposed a buyout of CryptoPunk #2386 for only 10 ETH on Aug. 28. 

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Rare Ape CryptoPunk sells for $1.5M, Magic Eden dominates NFT trading volume: Nifty Newsletter

A group of blockchain advocates urged the United States Congress to clearly define NFTs in response to the SEC Wells notice to OpenSea.

In this week’s newsletter, read about how the non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace Magic Eden continues to dominate the space in trading volume, surpassing its competitors. However, the company has also faced backlash over its decision to segregate its United States-based services. Check out how a rare CryptoPunk sold for almost $1.5 million despite the market not looking good for NFTs. In other news, blockchain advocates urged the US Congress to define certain NFTs as consumer products and exempt them from securities laws.

Magic Eden clinched the top spot in trading volume in August, marking its sixth consecutive month in first place. The marketplace recorded a volume of $122.47 million, securing a 36.7% market share for the month. 

Blue held the second spot with a trading volume of $84 million. This gave the NFT marketplace a market share of 25.4%. Meanwhile, OpenSea saw $66.5 million in trading volume in August, bringing its market share to almost 20%.

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Immutable shuts NFT marketplace, why Web3 gaming needs its own Steam: Nifty Newsletter

Immutable has wound down its NFT marketplace to allow marketplaces within its ecosystem to flourish.

In this week’s newsletter, find out why Immutable has retired its non-fungible token (NFT) marketplaces and why Kanpai Pandas NFTs floor prices dropped after the team’s involvement in a Donald Trump-themed token. Check out why an executive believes Web3 gaming needs a Steam-like platform, and, in other news, big companies are continuing to develop metaverse hardware. 

NFT and gaming blockchain Immutable shut down its marketplace to focus on expanding its ecosystem. On Aug. 8, the network announced that it would wind down its marketplace operations on Aug. 13. 

The company said it would support other marketplaces within its ecosystem instead of competing with them. The team highlighted that the Immutable marketplace was initially created to showcase what was possible with the Immutable software development kit.

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Galaxy tokenizes violin to secure loan, NFT sales volume tumbles: Nifty Newsletter

NFTs recorded a 54% drop in sales volume, from over $1 billion in April to $624 million in May.

In this week’s newsletter, read about Galaxy Digital using a nonfungible token (NFT) of a historic violin to secure a loan and how NFT sales volume plummeted in May. Check out what the United States Treasury Department thinks about NFTs and how Bitcoin NFTs reached a new milestone. In other news, Dapper Labs CEO Roham Gharegozlou claims that NFTs are not securities after reaching a settlement on the NBA Top Shot Moments lawsuit. 

Michael Novogratz’s Galaxy Digital and Animoca Brands co-founder Yat Siu tokenized a 300-year-old violin as collateral for a loan. Galaxy lent Siu an undisclosed amount, and to secure the loan, the Animoca executive used an NFT of the historic Stradivarius violin and the physical asset as collateral.

The violin was once owned by the Russian Empress Catherine the Great. Musical instrument auction house Tarisio traced the violin’s origins back over 300 years. Siu acquired the violin in a 2023 auction for $9 million.

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Yuga Labs restructures again, EU touts metaverse health benefits: Nifty Newsletter

Yuga Labs CEO Greg Solano said intricate corporate processes muddied the company’s creative spirit.

In this week’s newsletter, nonfungible token (NFT) company Yuga Labs has laid off employees, and the European Union believes the metaverse can help children’s health. Find out how professionals feel about blockchain integration on metaverses and look into Disney’s 360-degree treadmill, demonstrated by tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee. In other news, Manchester City enters a new partnership to develop digital collectibles. 

Yuga Labs CEO Greg Solano announced on X that the NFT company is restructuring and laying off employees. Solano highlighted to the staff that the firm’s creative spirit was “muddied by labyrinthine corporate processes.”

The executive said the company had been planning more than they were shipping, ending up in groups and committees. However, the Yuga CEO said he has a plan, revealing some steps in the reorganization process.

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Magic Eden overtakes Blur, Yuga Labs offloads NFT games: Nifty Newsletter

NFT platform Magic Eden recorded an NFT trading volume of $756.5 million in March, surpassing its rival Blur.

In this week’s newsletter, nonfungible token (NFT) platform Magic Eden surpassed Blur in trading volume in March, and Yuga Labs is offloading two NFT games. In other news, find out how Manchester City football fans could get limited edition jerseys through NFTs and how a former Disney executive launched a Web3 game publishing company. And don’t forget this week’s Nifty News, featuring PayPal removing buyer and seller protections for NFTs. 

Solana-based NFT marketplace Magic Eden recorded a 194.4% increase in monthly trading volume, surpassing the leading platform Blur in March. The NFT trading platform recorded $756.5 million in trading volume last month, while Blur recorded $530.4 million.

According to a CoinGecko report, Magic Eden’s rise was partly due to its newly implemented Diamond reward program and its continued partnership with NFT company Yuga Labs. Magic Eden’s rise in March marked its sixth consecutive month when its trading volume increased.

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Donald Trump, FIFA and Megadeth NFTs, trading volume nears $1B: Nifty Newsletter

NFT platform Enjin migrated 200 million NFTs from Ethereum and a sidechain to its blockchain network.

In this week’s newsletter, read about how nonfungible token (NFT) trading volume neared $1 billion in November, and check out new NFT releases from former United States President Donald Trump, FIFA and heavy metal band Megadeth. In other news, find out why NFT platform Enjin transferred 200 million NFTs from Ethereum to its own blockchain. And don’t forget this week’s Nifty News featuring Funko and Disney’s NFTs. 

NFTs might be making a comeback as their trading volume almost reached $1 billion in November. According to data tracking site DappRadar, NFT trading volume shifted last month, surging by 125%. This shows that there’s been a shift in user behavior around NFTs. 

In addition, last month also showed a 114% increase in the average value of NFT transactions. The metric showed the average value of NFT transactions went up from $126 to $270.

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