Ordinals NFT Popularity to blame
Ordinal’s NFTs have pushed transaction fees on the Bitcoin network to the highest levels since November 2022, on-chain data from IntoTheBlock shows.
Transaction fees on the Bitcoin network have doubled in the past two weeks, going from $0.77 on January 29th to a high of $1.95 on February 10th. Blockchain’s median transaction fee has also increased to $0.73 from $0.25 on January 30. CryptoQuant also noted that Ordinal’s NFT transactions had increased network activity to May 2021 levels when China banned crypto.
Ordinal NFT’s popularity is rising
The increase in Bitcoin network fees coincides with the increased interest in Ordinal’s NFTs. A recent report from BitMEX Research revealed that over 10,000 NFTs were minted between December 14th and February 7th. During this period, Ordinals NFTs have taken up 526 megabytes (MB) of block space, with creators spending 6.77 BTC on Ordinals-related transactions.
Interest in the NFTs has also seen their value rise to new heights. NFT now reported that some of these NFTs had been sold for as high as 11 BTC due to the skyrocketing demand.
Still, not everyone is happy with the growth of NFTs on the Bitcoin network. One such critic is lightning network developer Rene Pickhardt. Pickhardt mean people are “wasting valuable block space by spamming jpegs”.
Pickhardt’s remarks cannot be ignored because Ordinal’s NFTs have consumed over 70% of Bitcoin’s total block space despite only accounting for about 3% of complete transactions, according to BitMEX research.
Bitcoin (BTC) price drops below $22,000
Despite the growing interest in Bitcoin Ordinal’s NFTs, the BTC price fell below $22,000 after trading at a high of $24,300 on February 2nd. The 12% swing coincides with the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) enforcement action against crypto exchange Kraken.
BeInCrypto’s global head of news, Ali Martinez, pointed out that an increase in buying pressure followed the recent price correction. Martinez confirmed it Traders on Binance Futures appear to have bought the dip. About 62% of all accounts on Binance Futures with an open BTC position went long.
Disclaimer
BeInCrypto strives to provide accurate and up-to-date information, but it will not be responsible for missing facts or inaccurate information. You comply and understand that you should use this information at your own risk. Cryptocurrencies are highly volatile financial assets, so do your research and make your own financial decisions.
