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The NFT market continues to face challenges amid the broader crypto slump, with sales volume decreasing by 4.7% to $94.7 million. This marks a sustained decline compared to the previous week’s $102.8 million. Alongside sales volume, the number of NFT buyers has dropped by 77.9% to 128,244, and NFT sellers have fallen by 75.2% to 85,792. Additionally, NFT transactions are down 6.3% to 1,441,009.

Crypto Market Trends Impacting NFTs

The downward trend in NFTs coincides with notable declines in major cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin has dropped to the $83,000 level, reflecting a 1.47% decrease, while Ethereum has lost 13.5% of its value over the past seven days, hovering near the $1,500 mark. The global crypto market capitalization now stands at $2.63 trillion, highlighting a broader market slump.

Ethereum Leads NFT Sales Despite Price Decline

Despite Ethereum’s falling price, its blockchain remains dominant in NFT sales, generating $36.1 million in volume—a 41.3% increase from the previous week. However, this growth wasn’t sufficient to counteract declines across other chains.

Other Blockchain Sales Figures

  • Polygon: Ranked second with $17.4 million in sales, showing a modest 4.3% increase.
  • Mythos Chain: Third place with $14.1 million in sales, up slightly by 2%.
  • Solana: Sales fell sharply by 33.4% to $6.5 million, continuing its struggles.
  • Immutable: Rounded out the top five with $5.5 million in sales, up 15.4% from the previous week.

Changes in Wash Trading Patterns

Wash trading trends have shifted significantly. Polygon now leads with $2.6 million in wash trading activity—a notable 232.6% surge. In contrast, Ethereum’s wash trading volume decreased by 9.2% to $2.5 million.

Top NFT Collections of the Week

Several NFT collections stood out in sales volume this week:

  • Courtyard (on Polygon): Maintained its top position with $15.6 million in sales, up 6.1%.
  • CryptoPunks: Elevated to second place with $9.1 million, experiencing a 168.3% surge.
  • DMarket: Ranked third with $8.9 million, showing a 4.4% increase.
  • f(x) wstETH position (on Ethereum): A newcomer, entering fourth place with $5.8 million in sales.
  • Guild of Guardians Heroes: Completed the top five with $3.7 million in sales, up 29.4%.

High-Value NFT Sales

The week also witnessed notable high-value NFT transactions:

CryptoPunks #3100 sold for 4,000 ETH ($6,042,922).

  • CryptoPunks #1182 sold for 142 ETH ($209,310).
  • Pixel Vault Founders DAO #4 sold for 97.08 RETH ($161,511).
  • Autoglyphs #462 sold for 98.5 WETH ($149,724).
  • CryptoPunks #5361 sold for 69.69 ETH ($108,204).

OpenSea’s Push for Regulatory Clarity

OpenSea has requested the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to officially clarify that NFTs are not classified as “exchanges or brokers” under U.S. securities law. In a letter to SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce, OpenSea argued that NFTs typically have only one seller per token, meaning their platforms do not operate like traditional stock exchanges or brokerage firms.

OpenSea emphasized that all NFT transactions are conducted on-chain via smart contracts, with their platform serving as a discovery tool rather than an intermediary, custodian, or advisor. To minimize regulatory uncertainty, OpenSea has urged the SEC to issue clear guidance confirming that NFT marketplaces are not subject to exchange rules.

This initiative follows OpenSea’s previous encounter with a Wells notice from the SEC last year. The investigation was subsequently dropped in early 2025 after regulatory priorities shifted.

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