Bankless

Share this post
Crypto Down, NFTs Up [LITE]
newsletter.banklesshq.com

Crypto Down, NFTs Up [LITE]

Why NFTs are going up while crypto's are going down

David Hoffman
Jan 31
8
Share this post
Crypto Down, NFTs Up [LITE]
newsletter.banklesshq.com

2022 Bankless Badges go out tomorrow! Last chance to reserve your spot on the list.

Join Bankless Class of 2022


Dear Bankless Nation,

Last week, we published “5 Reasons to be Excited about the Bear Market”.

Since then, ETH & BTC are up 6%, to $2,700 and $38,500. Not bad. The bear has stayed away for at least another week.

But you know what’s up way more than 6%?

NFTs.

NFT’s have broken records in January.

Crypto down, NFTs up

It just goes to show… Crypto has fragmented into niche markets: L1s, DeFi, NFTs, GameFi, DAOs, etc.

And there’s always a bull market somewhere.

Every time I see the red “-20%” numbers on CoinGecko, I open up OpenSea and peruse the JPEGs as a coping mechanism to distract from the pain.

Apparently, I’m not alone. January NFT volumes have absolutely dominated all previous months, even after you take out the NFT wash-trading from LooksRare.

Not a bear market for NFTs

Why are NFTs going up while crypto’s going down? Simple: NFTs have net new buyers right now—the rest of crypto does not.

A few NFT collections have hit record floor prices, so let’s dive into a few of them!

1. Bored Apes

The BAYC floor is at an astonishing 115 ETH. That’s $300,000+. 🤯

Absolutely mindblowing. I’m actually highly skeptical that this is organic demand; there are definitely some handshake deals between BAYC and celebs who are donning them as PFPs, making it hard to discern what’s true demand and what’s marketing, but that’s a topic for a different day.

Justin Beiber bought BAYC #3001 for 500 ETH, a purchase that has left many speculators perplexed as to why Justin would pay $1.3M for an ape that’s worth something closer to $250,000.

I guess it’s pretty on-brand for BAYC to be messing things up like this tho 🤣🤭

2. Doodles

Doodles have hit a 15 ETH floor, up from just 2-3 ETH a few weeks ago. Their unique art has attracted many believers claiming that they’re the next big thing!

I tried my best to get on the Doodle train, but I just couldn’t find resonance with them. Eric Conner told me to HFSP.

Justin Beiber disagrees, and also hopped on the Doodle train.

Twitter avatar for @purple_policePurplePolice.eth @purple_police
yep, @justinbieber aped. @doodles
Image

January 29th 2022

31 Retweets265 Likes

3. Azuki

Azuki’s are new on the scene. Just 21 days old, and have risen to a 10 ETH floor.

These PFP NFTs have found resonance with anime and Asian-culture lovers, but also with 3x NBA champion Andre Iguodala.

Twitter avatar for @andreandre @andre
#NewProfilePic
Image

January 27th 2022

246 Retweets2,802 Likes

Absolutely no clue why he chose a snot-bubble Azuki to flex on his 1.3M followers… but… Hey, to each their own.

4. Cool Cats

The Cool Cat floor is at 15 ETH! The whole cat community is very excited about Cool Pets, which is like a Bored Ape Kennel Club addition to the cat’s ecosystem but also has a Neopets element, where you can engage and care for your pet.

Twitter avatar for @nqNiQu @nq
1 more day until cool pets ⏳ Who is ready? #CoolCats #CoolPets

January 30th 2022

189 Retweets958 Likes

Innovation like this has become the new table-stakes for an NFT ecosystem, as attention is always fleeting. High-touch things with hyped announcements are definitely driving attention to Cool Cats and are one of the main forces behind the rising floor price.

Also, they’re just so damn cute!

Twitter avatar for @TrustlessStateDavidHoffman.eth Ξ🦇🔊💰🏴 @TrustlessState
Congrats to @BonoNikolic for owning the more adorablest @coolcatsnft so jell every time i see it
Image

January 28th 2022

6 Retweets72 Likes

We like the cats ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

(disclaimer, I own 1 cat)

Not-Pumping NFTs that are also my bags

There are a few NFT projects out there that have strong highly engaged communities that have captured my attention lately!

1. Crypto Covens

I’ve fallen in love with Crypto Covens lately. It’s a female-led NFT project featuring various witches. The art is super unique and the community is very grounded and wholesome!

Image

The play is that this becomes the lady-beloved NFT project, shoulder-to-shoulder with World of Women. Most of my Web3 lady friends love this project and the endless permutations of hairstyles and looks.

2. MFers

MFers are hard to hate.

They’re the perfect level of facetiousness but also good vibes. They’re not as egregious as CryptoDickButts when it comes to ‘sticking it to the man’, but they’re still so offensively simple.

Concluding Thoughts

People are leaning into the ‘fun’ aspect of NFTs lately. NFTs are helping us collectively recover from the gut-punch of this year’s price action.

It’s been impressive to watch floor prices go up almost universally in ETH terms, while the USD value of ETH falls.

The crypto markets continue to segregate and mature into better versions of themselves!

Markets are reeling, but communities are vibing. Which begs the question that I posed in last Market Monday’s piece: Does it feel like we’re in a bear market?

- David


🙏 Sponsor: Ledger—Join the wait list for the Crypto Life (CL) Card powered by Ledger. 💳


🎙️ NEW PODCAST EPISODE

🎙️ Listen to podcast episode | Apple | Spotify | YouTube | RSS Feed

Tune in to the exclusive debrief episode. Need access? Join the Bankless Nation


MARKET MONDAY:

Scan this section and dig into anything interesting

Market numbers 📊

  • ETH rebounds +19% to $2,680 from $2,250 last Monday

  • BTC jumps +13% to $38,420 from $34,000 last Monday

  • BED rises +20% to $105 from $87 last Monday

  • DPI soars +26% to $191 from $151 last Monday

  • GMI climbs +16% to $69 from $61 last Monday

  • DeFi TVL dips -13% to $80B from $92B last Monday

  • L2 TVL stalls +2% to $5.4B from $5.3B last Monday

  • DAI stability fee on ETH holds at 2.00%

Market opportunities 🤑

  • Message your friends with your Ethereum wallet

  • Collect The Rug NFT #3—the mostly credible news source in crypto

  • Hedge contract risk using Polymarket prediction market

  • Borrow against the value of your blue-chip NFTs with Arcade (DYOR)

  • Lend crypto on Aave V3—test-nets deployed on 7 networks!

  • Rent an NFT profile picture with Rentable

  • Claim your RON tokens if you’re eligible

  • Earn LOOKS rewards when you trade any NFT on LooksRare

  • Long (or short) CRV with 10x leverage on Perpetual Protocol

  • Launch a SuperRare Spaces—independent galleries for creatives & communities

  • Collect Hedgies—4,200 unique avatars from the dYdX ecosystem

  • Borrow on Rari Fuse’s Arbitrum deployment

This week’s market opportunities are free! Join the Bankless Nation to get them every week.


Alpha Leaks & Yield Farming 🌾

What’s new 🗞️, what’s hot 🔥, & money reads 📚


Governance


WHAT I’M & WHAT YOU’RE DOING


Extra Credit Learning


Some recent tweets…

WYD if crypto drops another 50%?

Twitter avatar for @RyanSAdamsRYAN SΞAN ADAMS - rsa.eth 🦇🔊 @RyanSAdams
Decide now if you’d stay in crypto if price drops another 50%. Because it may.

January 30th 2022

55 Retweets848 Likes

Job opportunities 🧑‍💼

  • SmartDeFi is hiring an Accountant

  • Syndica is hiring a Full Stack Engineer

  • StarX is hiring a Smart Contract Tech Lead

  • Goldfinch is hiring a Web3 Engineer (Solidity & React)

  • Syndica is hiring a Senior Go/Rust Engineer

Browse more roles (or add your own) at the Bankless Jobs Board


Action Steps

  • Execute any good market opportunities you saw

  • Listen to Blockchains and Cities with Haseeb


Go Bankless. $22 / mo. Includes archive access, Inner Circle & Badge—(pay w/ crypto)


🙏Thanks to our sponsor

The Crypto Life Card

The Crypto Life (CL) Card, powered by Ledger, is a crypto debit card built to be compatible with the Ledger ecosystem.

With the CL Card, you will be able to:

  • Instant exchange to fiat—stay in crypto until the last moment. Only sell your crypto when you make a purchase using your card.

  • All in one place—securely top-up your card using either fiat or crypto deposits. Manage your balance - and more. All in Ledger Live app.

  • Spending without selling—need cash? Now you can increase your spending limit by using your crypto as collateral.

  • Get your paycheck in crypto—set a percentage in your card account to receive your paycheck partially in crypto.

Join the Waitlist!

Want to get featured on Bankless? Send your article to submissions@banklesshq.com

Write for Bankless


Not financial or tax advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This newsletter is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.


Disclosure. From time-to-time I may add links in this newsletter to products I use. I may receive commission if you make a purchase through one of these links. Additionally, the Bankless writers hold crypto assets. See our investment disclosures here.

Share this post
Crypto Down, NFTs Up [LITE]
newsletter.banklesshq.com
TopNewCommunity

No posts

Ready for more?

© 2022 Bankless, LLC.
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Publish on Substack Get the app
Substack is the home for great writing