The post Bybit shuts doors on NFT marketplace as interest wanes appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.

Bybit announced plans to shut down its NFT Marketplace, Inscription Marketplace, and Initial DEX Offering (IDO) product pages to “streamline offerings and enhance user experience.” The exchange is the latest platform to exit a digital collectibles market that has seen demand, trading volume, and user activity sharply decline over the past two years. The closure will take effect on April 8 at 16:00 UTC. Users have been advised to transfer assets from their Bybit web3 wallets before the deadline. NFT trading volume collapse The shutdown follows a broader trend of waning institutional interest in NFTs. Kraken recently shut down its own NFT marketplace, while LG Electronics has discontinued its NFT platform, LG Art Lab, after three years of activity. Data from blockchain analytics firm DappRadar shows that trading volumes for top NFT collections have plummeted more than 95% since the market’s peak in 2021. The number of active wallets engaging in NFT trades has fallen from over half a million to less than 20,000 as of 2025. Total NFT sales fell to $1.5 billion during the first quarter, down from $4.1 billion in the same period last year — a 63% year-over-year drop. Sales in March alone were down 76% compared to the prior year. Collections once synonymous with NFT hype, such as Bored Ape Yacht Club, no longer command significant trading volumes, though a few projects have bucked the trend. Pudgy Penguins saw a 13% sales increase in the first quarter, reaching $72 million, while Doodles benefited from a recent partnership with McDonald’s to hit $32 million in quarterly sales. Security concerns Bybit’s retreat also comes amid lingering concerns following a major security breach in late February. The exchange was targeted by North Korea-linked hackers who stole an estimated $1.4 billion in digital assets. Much of the stolen crypto…

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Filed under: News - @ April 1, 2025 10:18 pm