A Multi-Chain Future: Rarible adds new support for Tezos and Polygon NFTs
Sure, Ethereum is still the NFT market share leader, but there is an ever-present “multi-chain future” discussion among the NFT space. NFT market leader OpenSea has shown open arms for this concept, and has added support for chains such as Polygon and Avalanche.
It doesn’t just stop and start with OpenSea, either: the once Solana-dedicated NFT marketplace Magic Eden has branched out, including support for Polygon NFTs. Although not cross-chain (at least not yet), Ethereum-dedicated free platform Blur has launched its own Ethereum-based platform token, causing quite a stir this week.
And now Rarible, another major NFT marketplace for many years, is expanding into a multi-chain future as well – announcing new tools to support Tezos and Polygon NFTs this week.
Runs with Rarible
Rarible first announced a desire to integrate multi-chain NFTs into Solana, Tezos and Flow about a year ago. The marketplace has largely brought this vision to life, and today the platform supports collections minted on Ethereum, Solana, Tezos, Polygon and Immutable X.
So what is this week’s announcement from Rarible really about? It boils down to a new aggregation tool on Rarible’s marketplace that will allow users to buy Tezos-based NFTs from dedicated marketplaces like Ojbkt and fxhash. Tezos has been a unique NFT player with a strong focus on building an artist-focused environment.
Polygon has taken an opposite approach, securing big brand partners like Starbucks and Reddit in what has become a long list of more “institutional” partners. Accordingly, Rarible’s aggregation tool will also support Polygon NFTs on OpenSea.
These maneuvers follow Rarible’s launch of its aggregator tool back in October, which looks to use other marketplaces to add accessibility and visibility across collections.
Tezos (XTZ) has been working to find it's niche in crypto, with strong traction in building a grassroots network of talent NFT creatives. | Source: XTZ-USD on TradingView.com
Multi-Chain Madness: What and Why
Many ‘altcoin’ maxis even believe in a multi-chain future, mostly due to the different use cases offered across chains. Some may be better for privacy, others for cost efficiency, etc. – and generally these different use cases can all find homes for projects that have a core need. In short, the crypto landscape has evolved beyond the “store of value” use case of Bitcoin and the “smart connector” offering of Ethereum. More nuance, more investments, more projects, and thus – more utility for specific chains.
Of course, this does not mean that every chain will survive in the long run. However, this move by Rarible bodes well for already strengthened chains like Polygon and Tezos – who have clearly carved out their respective paths in the NFT space.
