Trait Sniper Weekly News 13 (29.08 - 04.09.2022)
Let's review the last week of August regarding the BTC price and OpenSea trading volume. In addition, information on the NFT market, including Meta's NFT Integration, Eminem & Snoop Dogg's VMA Performance, and Bill Murray's Charity NFT Project Exploited for Almost $175,000 is provided. The Trait Sniper summary is provided below!
Blockchain Market
Bitcoin Price Dips 14% In August
Bitcoin (Bitcoin) posted its worst August performance since 2015 after monthly candlesticks fell 13.9%. Bias is trending towards ever lower levels for Bitcoin after BTC price performance fails to preserve $20,000 at the August close.
While maintaining June's close as the macro low on the monthly chart, the performance led traders into firmly bearish territory.
OpenSea Trading Volume Down 99% From All-Time Highs
The trade volume on the biggest NFT platform OpenSea has decreased by 99.9%, signaling a poor start to the autumn season. According to the most recent statistics from DappRadar, transactions totaling $9.34M were performed on Sunday. This is significantly lower than the $2.7 billion reported on May 1st when the platform hit its peak.
Furthermore, the site had 24,020 active users on Sunday, which is one-third less than on May 1st. These alarming statistics surface soon after OpenSea was sued for stealing NFT policy (which they ultimately had to update).
Shortly after Sunday’s trading volume data surfaced, an OpenSea spokesperson released an optimistic statement:
“We’re playing the long game because we see what’s possible, so we’re not that concerned about short-term volatility. We always expected frothiness, hype, and deflation as the community and use cases evolve, the tech gets more sophisticated, and creators figure out how to build more utility into their projects.”
As its trading volume stats keep decreasing, OpenSea is focusing on its Seaport protocol. Seaport aims to improve the users’ experience while reducing NFT transaction costs.
NFT Market
Meta’s NFT Integration Goes Live On Instagram and Facebook
Wondering how you can show your NFTs on Meta’s social media? The process is simple. You must link your wallet to the platform to share your digital collectibles on Facebook and Instagram. You can connect to the app if your wallet supports ERC721 tokens such as MetaMask, WalletConnect, CoinBase, etc. Once connected, you have the ability to choose which NFTs you would like to showcase. There are no fees associated with this feature.
Currently, this feature is only accessible to users in the United States. The posting of NFTs across the accounts of foreign users has been tested since last year. Therefore overseas users need not worry. It is thus just a matter of time until this new feature is implemented worldwide.
Eminem & Snoop Dogg’s VMA Performance Featured The Otherside Meta
On August 28th, hip-hop icons Snoop Dogg and Eminem reunited to perform their latest single “From The D 2 The LBC” at the MTV Video Music Awards.
Eminem and Snoop Dogg began the concert by smoking on a sofa. Eventually, the two begin their trek to the metaverse. There, audiences might see digital avatars performing in vibrant settings.
At some point, the rappers turn into their Bored Ape NFTs while exploring the Otherside metaverse. The VMA stage they shared featured giant BAYC avatars dancing along to the dark track’s rhythm.
Accordingly, MTV teamed up with Yuga Labs for the unique performance. Of course, the groundbreaking show has spotlighted the NFT market like never before.
The BAYC-themed video by Eminem and Snoop Dogg was nominated for Best Hip Hop Video at this year's MTV VMAs. Overall, the live performance opened several doors for NFT creators to the global mainstream audience.
Bill Murray Charity NFT Project Exploited for Almost $175k
On September 2nd, @NFTHerder reported in detail through a Twitter thread that a hacker stole around $175,000 worth of ETH from Hollywood actor Bill Murray’s wallet following his charity NFT auction titled ‘Bill Murray 1000’.
The hack actually happened on Thursday, when the hacker drained 94% of the funds in Murray’s wallet at roughly 7 PM ET, as per Etherscan and details released by the actor’s team. Beyond this, there was also an attempt to steal some of the NFTs that Murray personally owns.
A wallet security team saved him from the worst-case situation. They did so by transferring his precious NFTs, such as Damien Hirst, Cryptopunks, Pudgy Penguins, Cool Cats, and Flower Girls, to a pair of safehouse wallets, so minimizing the risk of a second heist by a significant margin. In addition, they tried to take 800 NFTs from his collection.
The actor's crew has already filed a police case and is collaborating with Chainalysis, a crypto analytics company, to identify the hacker and perhaps bring them to jail.
According to CoinDesk, in response to this hack, the auction’s runner-up, Mishap72, donated 120 ETH to the Coinbase of Chive Charities to replace what was lost.
Final Thoughts
At the end of August, the crypto market's pricing position remains unfavorable. In addition, OpenSea's trade volume has decreased by 99 percent. On the other hand, Meta is progressively introducing NFT and wallet app users to its social network. Eminem and Snoop Dogg are two musicians who have been very active in promoting NFT and bringing it to the mainstream when they performed it at the Video Music Awards.
Cheers to a new month! 🥂