Cryptocurrency derivatives exchange, FTX, has launched an NFT marketplace on its U.S. subsidiary platform. The platform will enable users to mint, buy and sell NFTs across the Ethereum and Solana blockchains.
However, the platform currently supports only JPEG and PNG NFTs. It is expected that other formats will be available soon. Deposits and withdrawals are also expected to be launched in the coming weeks, opening up the capability of depositing external NFTs onto the platform.
While the platform is native to the U.S. subsidiary of the exchange, the CEO, 29-year-old Sam Banksman Fried in a tweet said that non-U.S users can also access it.
The NFT platform is an extension of the exchange’s capabilities and a significant milestone for them. Another recent milestone they achieved was the acquisition of LedgerX. Last week, FTX.US announced that it had acquired the U.S. registered cryptocurrency derivatives platform for an undisclosed price.
The move is set to expand FTX’s reach to regulated markets as LedgerX is already registered and regulated under the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Swap Execution Facility (SEF), and Derivatives Clearing Organization (DCO). The platform can be used by both retail and institutional investors, allowing them to trade cryptocurrency futures and options in the U.S. market.
The attention that FTX is paying to NFT traces back to the growth the sector has witnessed this year. NFT’s or Non-Fungible tokens are completely unique digital items that are issued on a blockchain. They have become extremely popular in 2021 as their trading volumes and prices show. In the last 30 days alone, the top five NFT marketplaces which include OpenSea, Axie Infinity, CryptoPunks, NBA Top Shots, and SuperRare have grown 496.99%, 1.89%, 115.15%, 54.88%, and 125.49% respectively according to DappRadar.
OpenSea also has a market cap of $3.95 billion having surged recently to become the first NFT marketplace to surpass $1 billion in monthly trading volume. Forbes reported that in July alone, NFTs raked in over $1.2 billion in sales which is almost a half of the $2.5 billion cumulative sales volume in the first two quarters of 2021. The reports also note that the dapp (decentralized applications) industry as a whole registered more than 1.4 million daily unique users, a 23.72% increase from the previous month.
Hence, it is no surprise that more market players are looking to capitalize on the massive moves that NFTs are making. Previously, Binance, OKEx, two other notable exchanges also launched NFT platforms in their ecosystems.
