Gemini Shuts Down NFT Marketplace in Latest Blow to Crypto Art's Ecosystem
In a move that signals the continued decline of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as an investment opportunity, Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss's cryptocurrency exchange Gemini has announced the closure of its Nifty Gateway marketplace. The platform, which was acquired by Gemini in 2019, is now operating in withdrawal-only mode and will officially shut down on February 26th.
The decision comes as a significant blow to the NFT market, which has experienced a sharp downturn since its peak in 2022. Despite being touted as a key focus for cryptocurrency exchanges during this time, NFTs have failed to live up to their hype. In fact, many of the launches made by Coinbase and Kraken during this period have turned out to be costly mistakes, with both platforms eventually shutting down their own NFT marketplaces.
The collapse of the NFT market has been attributed to a number of factors, including over-hype and speculation. At its peak, NFTs were being sold for tens of millions of dollars, with celebrities such as Paris Hilton and Tom Brady endorsing them. However, this enthusiasm was short-lived, and many investors lost significant amounts of money on their NFT purchases.
One notable example of the NFT market's collapse is the story of CryptoSlam 500 NFT Index, which has seen its value plummet by 98.98% since its launch four years ago. In contrast to the millions being made in the NFT space during its peak, weekly sales have dwindled from over $1 billion in 2021 to less than $60 million just a few weeks ago.
The closure of Gemini's Nifty Gateway is also seen as a sign that the cryptocurrency industry has moved on from NFTs. Both Coinbase and Kraken have stated their plans to roll NFT functionality into their "everything app" products, but it appears these efforts are too little, too late.
Despite this, there are still some hobbyists who will continue to collect, issue, and trade NFTs, albeit at a much smaller scale than during the market's peak. As with any collectible item, whether physical or digital, there is always someone willing to pay a premium for rare or unique items.
In conclusion, the closure of Gemini's Nifty Gateway is just the latest blow to the NFT ecosystem. As the cryptocurrency industry continues to evolve and adapt, it will be interesting to see if NFTs can find a new place in the market. For now, however, it seems that the heyday of crypto art has come and gone.
In a move that signals the continued decline of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as an investment opportunity, Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss's cryptocurrency exchange Gemini has announced the closure of its Nifty Gateway marketplace. The platform, which was acquired by Gemini in 2019, is now operating in withdrawal-only mode and will officially shut down on February 26th.
The decision comes as a significant blow to the NFT market, which has experienced a sharp downturn since its peak in 2022. Despite being touted as a key focus for cryptocurrency exchanges during this time, NFTs have failed to live up to their hype. In fact, many of the launches made by Coinbase and Kraken during this period have turned out to be costly mistakes, with both platforms eventually shutting down their own NFT marketplaces.
The collapse of the NFT market has been attributed to a number of factors, including over-hype and speculation. At its peak, NFTs were being sold for tens of millions of dollars, with celebrities such as Paris Hilton and Tom Brady endorsing them. However, this enthusiasm was short-lived, and many investors lost significant amounts of money on their NFT purchases.
One notable example of the NFT market's collapse is the story of CryptoSlam 500 NFT Index, which has seen its value plummet by 98.98% since its launch four years ago. In contrast to the millions being made in the NFT space during its peak, weekly sales have dwindled from over $1 billion in 2021 to less than $60 million just a few weeks ago.
The closure of Gemini's Nifty Gateway is also seen as a sign that the cryptocurrency industry has moved on from NFTs. Both Coinbase and Kraken have stated their plans to roll NFT functionality into their "everything app" products, but it appears these efforts are too little, too late.
Despite this, there are still some hobbyists who will continue to collect, issue, and trade NFTs, albeit at a much smaller scale than during the market's peak. As with any collectible item, whether physical or digital, there is always someone willing to pay a premium for rare or unique items.
In conclusion, the closure of Gemini's Nifty Gateway is just the latest blow to the NFT ecosystem. As the cryptocurrency industry continues to evolve and adapt, it will be interesting to see if NFTs can find a new place in the market. For now, however, it seems that the heyday of crypto art has come and gone.
nfts were always a bit too flashy for me, i mean who needs to buy a digital picture for millions just because it's got a cool blockchain behind it? but i guess the hype was too much and now we're seeing some major players shutting down their nft marketplaces. still gotta respect the hobbyists out there who are passionate about collecting and trading these things 
. Now, everyone's running from the whole thing. It's just not sustainable when you're relying on speculation rather than actual demand.
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I'm not surprised at all. I mean, we've seen this coming for a while now. The whole NFT hype was just too much to handle. All those overpriced digital art pieces collecting dust on shelves 
... it's like people got caught up in the excitement and forgot what they were really buying: pixels on a screen.
. The NFT space got out of control, and the smart ones finally realized that it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows. Mark my words, though: there will be some innovation happen in crypto art, just not like this. Maybe they'll focus on more practical uses, like creating digital collectibles for gamers or something.
. Everyone was trying to make bank off these digital collectibles, but it just didn't add up. And now we're seeing the consequences 
Give me a break! It's all just speculation and greed 
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. Can't they come up with something new instead? I guess we'll just have to wait and see if NFTs can find a new home in the market 
. But for now, it's time to move on from this failed experiment 
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. I mean, we all knew the NFT craze was getting old fast. It's like people thought they could just create a digital collectible and it would magically become worth something 
. It was like people were trying to one-up each other with outrageous prices and "exclusive" launches 
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anyway idc if its a cryp art thing or whatever but now ill be over here watching crypto artists try to make it work on coinbase or kraken lol thats gonna be interesting 
they shuttin it down on Feb 26th! i mean its not like ppl didnt warn us bout dis... all these yrs nfts wer gettin hype but its actually kinda ironic dat all those rich peeps lost millions 
. some hobbyistz stil will collect n trade but not like b4 lol 
think its gonna take some time for nfts to bounce back 
it's like the entire hype around nfts was just a big bubble that burst... i mean i get why some people still think they're cool, but for most investors, it's been a total loss 
i mean, who's buying these things for tens of millions of dollars? it's all about speculation and hype at this point 
guess the crypto art scene just isn't what people thought it'd be. still got some hobbyists out there, i guess 
. The numbers don't lie tho - since 2022 NFT prices have been tanking 
. 98.98% value drop for CryptoSlam 500 index? 
, I guess some hobbyists will still be into collecting and trading NFTs for fun. It's def not about getting rich quick anymore 
2022: $14.5B in NFT sales
CryptoSlam 500 index value: $10,000 (down from $100,000)
As the crypto industry moves on, it'll be interesting to see if NFTs can find a new niche.