Ethereum NFTs Propel Weekly Sales To Over $300 Million

According to Cointelegraph, Ethereum-based non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have significantly influenced the market, driving weekly sales volumes to over $300 million. In the week leading up to December 21, collections such as Pudgy Penguins, LilPudgys, Azuki, Doodles, and CryptoPunks were at the forefront of NFT sales. This surge in volume resulted in December's NFT sales reaching $678 million within just 21 days, surpassing the previous month's record of $562 million. As of the time of reporting, December's sales volume had climbed to $771 million. In another development, two 23-year-olds from California have been arrested and charged with conducting a series of rug pulls involving NFTs and other digital assets, allegedly defrauding investors of over $22 million. Prosecutors claim that Gabriel Hay and Gavin Mayo misled investors with false statements and roadmaps for various NFT projects, subsequently abandoning these projects after securing investments. The duo is also accused of harassing and intimidating an individual who exposed their involvement in one of the NFT projects. Despite facing challenges in 2024, NFTs have continued to integrate within the Web3 space. While some predicted the decline of NFTs, data from CryptoSlam indicates that NFTs recorded approximately $8.5 billion in sales throughout the year. Although sales volumes have decreased compared to previous years, the NFT space experienced a 62% increase in unique buyers year-on-year. The number of NFT buyers rose from about 4.6 million in 2023 to 7.5 million in 2024. Despite enduring a downward trend and regulatory challenges, the NFT market has shown resilience and growth.