While bitcoin prices reject bearish pressure, another historic shift is occurring in the world of non-fungible tokens (nfts). According to an x analyst, Runestone, a collection of nfts minted in bitcoin, has recently gained popularity.
The Rise and Rise of Runestone: A bitcoin nft Collection
The observer now twitter.com/LeonidasNFT/status/1778252036456190136″ target=”_blank” rel=”noopener nofollow”>grades that its value is halfway to flipping one of ethereum's most valuable collections, the CryptoPunks. This emerging trend, the “orange wave,” signifies a potential shift in the nft landscape that will likely solidify bitcoin’s position.
bitcoin is the most valuable coin by market capitalization, ahead of ethereum. However, despite its megavaluation, the coin has lagged in other spheres due to its inherent lack of smart contract capability.
This is where ethereum shines, as seen in the multiple innovations released over the years, such as decentralized finance (DeFi), gaming, nfts, and more.
The success of DeFi protocols like Uniswap or Maker, for example, and the huge popularity of nft collections like CryptoPunks and Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), among others, are testaments to bitcoin's role in this sphere. However, this is about to change as innovators look to leverage bitcoin's security and broad base to launch DeFi protocols and even nft collections.
According to the analyst, Runestone currently has a total value locked (TVL) of over $731 million, roughly double that of BAYC. It is half that of CryptoPunks, but given its growing popularity, it could close the gap to ethereum's most valuable collection.
Runestone is an open source protocol. The collection was minted to reward participants who participated in the first year of the Ordinals protocol.
So far, CoinGecko data nft/runestone” target=”_blank” rel=”noopener nofollow”>sample that 112,400 nfts have been minted and distributed to 76,972 addresses. Runestone nfts have a minimum price of around $6,500 at spot prices. However, as demand increases, prices are likely to rise further, bringing the total TVL to $1 billion.
Incoming runes: will they change the rules of the game?
Given the success of Runestone nfts, it is likely that more collections will be released. thrown out in bitcoin following the planned launch of Runes in the coming days.
Runes, a new standard, will aim to improve the current BRC-20 standard by allowing the issuance of fungible tokens in bitcoin. This development could open up more opportunities for developers to release new solutions, taking advantage of bitcoin's superior security.
Since the rise of crypto assets in 2021, the value of nft collections has dropped over the past two years. BAYC, CryptoPunks, and other high-value nft collections plunged more than 50%, made worse by the relatively high cost of minting on ethereum.
Additionally, the rise of meme coins diverted attention away from nft trading as traders rushed to catch the next big wave of meme coins that would launch on the Solana, ethereum, Avalanche, and even ethereum layer 2 protocols.
Featured image from Canva, TradingView chart
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