Magic Eden Launches Bitcoin NFT Marketplace 

Magic Eden users can now buy, sell, list, and bid on Bitcoin-based Ordinal NFTs. 

Multi-chain non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace Magic Eden has launched a “fully audited” marketplace on the Bitcoin network as interest in Ordinal NFTs continues to grow.

In a press release, Magic Eden said it released the marketplace in honor of Bitcoin’s culture. Riding on the “lightning pace of adoption” that followed the launch of the Ordinal theory, the platform aims to empower collectors and creators, giving them access to appropriate tools.

Magic Eden Catches Ordinal Fever
Ordinals are NFTs inscribed in the witness portion of BTC transactions. The inscriptions can be images or videos, and they leverage the Taproot soft fork. They are also used to number satoshis on the Bitcoin protocol.

The launch of Ordinal NFTs increased user activity on Bitcoin, as users with non-zero bitcoin balances found a non-monetary purpose to be on the network.

More than 500,000 inscriptions have been made on the Bitcoin protocol, with the average number of Ordinals transactions per block being 250.

Magic Eden’s new marketplace allows users to list, bid, buy, and sell these inscriptions, or NFTs. To make this easier, the company has partnered with Bitcoin wallets Hiro and Xverse.

“Creating a marketplace on Bitcoin challenges the status quo and showcases our ability to overcome technical barriers. Now you can easily buy, sell, list, and bid on collectibles with our familiar and intuitive interface on our platform,” the platform said.

No Royalties Yet
Magic Eden also noted that its marketplace users would have no access to royalties due to the ecosystem’s lack of secure and trustless enforcement solutions. However, the platform disclosed that it is working toward developing an adequate royalty standard.

“We believe that this is most in-line with the ethos of the ecosystem, and despite this, we are actively looking into the development of an on-chain, permissionless royalty standard and are committed to working with creators and the greater community,” the company added.

Meanwhile, Magic Eden is not the first and only platform to launch a marketplace for Bitcoin Ordinals. ORDX and Generative XYZ have unveiled similar NFT trading platforms, with Gamma.io launching its own earlier this week.