OpenSea captures over 70% of NFT market after SEA token announcement
Changes in the NFT market
Opensea, the leading marketplace for non-fungible tokens (NFTs), has taken a dominant 71.5% share of the Ethereum NFT market over the past week. This marks a significant surge compared to four weeks ago when its market share stood at just 25.5%.
According to The Block, the primary growth occurred this week, with Opensea's market share jumping from 42.4% to 71.5%, mainly at the expense of Blur, whose share in the total NFT volume declined.
The likely driver behind this surge was the announcement of the SEA token on the Opensea platform. On February 13, Opensea officially introduced the SEA token, and since then, the platform's average daily NFT trading volume has soared to $17.4 million—a sharp increase from the $3.47 million average recorded in the five days leading up to the announcement.
The number of transactions also saw a dramatic rise: following the token announcement, Opensea processed an average of 14,700 transactions per day, compared to just 6,100 transactions per day in the preceding five days.
While specific details about the SEA token remain scarce, it has been confirmed that U.S. users are eligible to participate. Additionally, past activity on the platform will play a crucial role in the airdrop allocation—a promising development for those who were actively using Opensea during the NFT boom in 2021.
What is OpenSea?
OpenSea is the world’s largest decentralized marketplace for trading non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Built on the Ethereum blockchain, it also supports other networks such as Polygon, Solana, and Klaytn. Founded in 2017 by Devin Finzer and Alex Atallah, the platform enables users to buy, sell, create, and trade unique digital assets, including digital art, collectibles, virtual real estate, and in-game items.
Opensea emerged as a pioneer in the NFT industry, particularly during the 2021 boom when interest in digital collectibles skyrocketed, pushing the platform’s daily trading volume into the billions. By leveraging smart contracts to ensure transaction transparency and security, Opensea has become a go-to platform for creators, collectors, and investors alike.
Last week, OpenSea introduced its new trading platform, OS2.
