Monthly NFT trading volume – even after hitting 97% of the January 2022 peak – is still hundreds of millions of dollars, but not on the platform built by Coinbase, the second largest crypto exchange after Binance. Recent data shows that trading over the past 24 hours on Coinbase NFT has totaled $149 after hovering around $108 for much of Friday.
Perhaps Coinbase NFT announced on Wednesday that it is pausing NFT drops. In a tweet, the company clarified that the delay in launching new NFTs with artists exclusively on Coinbase is not the death knell for the company towards non-fungible tokens, and that it is pausing NFT drops to focus on other “features and tools”. in a market where artists are in demand.
“We believe that ultimately this change will bring increased focus and efficiency to the Coinbase NFT team’s ability to build a lasting product that best serves the community in the long-term,” a spokesperson at Coinbase said in a statement to fortune
The spokesperson did not elaborate on the “features and tools” mentioned in the original announcement or say when the NFT drops might continue. Coinbase still provides access to NFTs listed by competitors such as OpenSea, so users can access them elsewhere.
Since its launch in April, Coinbase NFT has seen a total trading volume of approximately $7.3 million, according to Dune Analytics. In addition to not breaking the $150 mark in the past 24 hours, the site’s seven-day volume is below $1,500. OpenSea, by comparison, saw more than $10 million in volume on Tuesday alone, per DappRadar.
As Coinbase, which is publicly traded, approaches its earnings release in late February, it is struggling with setbacks. (The stock price, however, has been tracked upward.) In January, the company announced that it will cut more than 25% of its current staff, approximately 950 employees, which follows another round of layoffs in 2022. And recently reached $ 100 million. settlement with the New York Department of Financial Services for allegedly failing to protect themselves from money laundering and narcotics trafficking, among other criminal acts.
Surojit Chatterjee, the company’s former head of product and who was reportedly responsible for launching Coinbase NFT, also left the company in November.
“Rest assured, our mission for Coinbase NFT has not changed and we remain optimistic about our future as we continue to build,” the company tweeted after the original announcement.
This hasn’t stopped members of the crypto community on Twitter from sharpening their knives.
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