July 10, 2023
By Sharan Kaur Phillora
Cardano, a blockchain platform often referred to as the “ghost chain” due to its declining number of non-fungible token (NFT) traders, has surprisingly outperformed some of the top blockchains in the NFT market. Despite its nickname, data from Forkast Labs reveals that Cardano’s NFT market performance in June surpassed that of industry leaders.
Here’s what we know:
In June, the monthly unique NFT buyers on Cardano dropped to 13,559, a 10.12% decrease from May and a significant decline from its peak of 254,383 in October 2021.
However, the CryptoSlam index provided by Forkast Labs, which measures the Cardano NFT market performance, only fell by 3.84% to 982.01 last month. This indicates that NFT traders on Cardano experienced fewer losses compared to traders on Ethereum, Solana, and Polygon, some of the world’s leading NFT networks.
During the same period, the Forkast ETH NFT Composite suggested that traders betting on Ethereum’s top NFT collections would have faced an estimated loss of 14.41%. Similarly, the Forkast SOL NFT Composite (Solana) fell by 14.71%, the Forkast POL NFT Composite (Polygon) slumped by 13.49%, and the Forkast 500 NFT Index, which gauges the overall NFT market, dropped by 16.14%.
Cardano’s native cryptocurrency, ADA, is the eighth-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, with around US$10.4 billion in circulation. Although it ranks sixth in terms of NFT trading volume, with US$597 million in sales, Cardano’s NFT ecosystem has faced criticism from social media users who have declared it dead.
However, industry experts like Moosa Zaidi, founder and CEO of NFT advertising firm NFT Hive Club, believe that Cardano shouldn’t be dismissed and that a market bull run could change its fortunes.
Despite the declining number of buyers, creators continue to release their NFT collections on Cardano. For instance, digital artist Joel Moore, known as Mulga, launched the MulgaKongz NFT collection on Cardano, selling out all 5,555 gorilla NFTs within 48 hours. Moore cited Cardano’s promising future, community support, and ecosystem as reasons for choosing the blockchain.
While some top Cardano NFT projects remain engaged with their community, others have become inactive on social media, raising concerns among users about the need for stronger community support.
However, Cardano developers continue to build on the platform, focusing on creating a solid foundation before pursuing more ambitious projects.
Cardano’s user-friendly experience, low-cost transaction fees, and scalability make it an attractive option for NFT creators and traders, according to Anndy Lian, author of the book “NFT: From Zero to Hero.” Nevertheless, the NFT market performance across all blockchains, including Cardano, is influenced by limited liquidity, which leads to challenges in finding buyers and decreased demand.
Despite the current market conditions, Cardano’s NFT ecosystem is considered healthy and has the potential for growth. Developers remain committed to building a strong infrastructure before focusing on more innovative projects.
With its unique advantages and supportive community, Cardano aims to overcome its ghost chain reputation and establish itself as a formidable player in the NFT market.
About the author
Sharan Kaur Phillora’s thirst for knowledge has led her to study many different subjects, including NFTs and Blockchain technology – two emerging technologies that will change how we interact with each other in the future. When she isn’t exploring a new idea or concept, she enjoys reading literary masterpieces.
