Analytics platform Dune reports that non-fungible token (NFT) marketplaces have experienced a decline in daily users and sales over the past week, reaching new lows not seen since July 2021.
NFT researcher SeaLaunch compiled a Dune dashboard revealing that the number of unique users across top NFT marketplaces, including Blur, OpenSea, and LooksRare, has steadily decreased over the past seven days, dropping to 7,805 on April 19. This marks the lowest number of unique users across NFT marketplaces since July 31, 2021, when OpenSea and other marketplaces recorded 7,455 unique users.
Similarly, sales across NFT marketplaces have also dipped, with 16,149 sales recorded on April 19, according to the same data from Dune. The last time sales were that low was on Nov. 9, 2021, when there were 12,910 sales.
It appears that top marketplaces OpenSea and Blur are experiencing significant declines in both unique users and sales. According to another SeaLaunch dashboard, Blur, a pro-focused NFT marketplace, saw a decreasing number of sales on its platform this week, with only 5,688 sales on Thursday, the lowest daily sales count in 90 days. The number of Blur daily unique users has also fallen, with only 1,777 unique users reported on April 19, the lowest in 90 days.
According to a Dune dashboard compiled by researcher Hildobby, OpenSea has experienced a sharp decline in daily traders over the past week, with only 10,640 traders reported on April 18. The data reveals that OpenSea’s daily trader count hasn’t dropped below 10,000 since July 2021.
“Unique daily users are effectively at a low amount historically on both marketplaces,” SeaLaunch told CoinDesk.
The reason behind the decline in daily users and sales across NFT marketplaces remains unclear. However, SeaLaunch informed CoinDesk that due to the decrease in activity across marketplaces and users, from pro traders to casual users, it is most likely that a “macro scenario” has impacted trading patterns. SeaLaunch suggests that “high gas prices” and “tax season liquidity issues” could be potential causes.
“Other scenarios may also have contributed to this, such as high-volume Blur airdrop farmers reducing the trading volumes and reducing liquidity, and the meme coin trading frenzy in the last days with coins such as PEPE,” SeaLaunch added.
Hildobby shared similar sentiments with CoinDesk. “I think it’s a combination of factors, but the biggest factors [in my opinion] are that not much interesting has been happening in NFTs lately and rapidly rising gas prices aren’t helping.”
Despite the decline in daily users and sales, not all metrics are pessimistic. Data from Dune shows that trading volume in ether (ETH) across NFT marketplaces has remained relatively stable over the past 30 days. Additionally, SeaLaunch notes that while the number of daily active users across OpenSea and Blur has decreased, Uniswap has managed to gain daily active users over the past two weeks.