Bored Ape NFT Frenzy Prompts OpenSea NFT Trade Volume Surge

Recent analysis shows OpenSea’s non-fungible token (NFT) trading volumes have surged past $700M. The rise in trading activity comes amid a renewed craze for Yuga Labs’ “Bored Ape Yacht Club” (BAYC) and “Mutant Ape Yacht Club” (MAYC).

OpenSea NFT Market Growth

According to data posted by Rchen8 on Dune Analytics, since the start of 2022, OpenSea has generated more than $700 million in trading volume. The year starts well on Monday, January 3, with a record-breaking $255.8 million worth of volume over the course of 24 hours.

Over the last year, OpenSea dominated NFT transactions. The largest NFT market had an astounding trading volume of $14 billion in 2021, dwarfing its previous year’s $21.7 million trade volume.

According to public blockchain data curated by Dune Analytics, on January 2, OpenSea recorded more than $243 million in Ethereum trading volume. That’s a significant increase from just over $170 million on January 1 and nearly $124 million on December 31, 2021.

In 2021, the Bored Ape Yacht Club earned the most money on OpenSea. Since its inception, Bored Apes have amassed a trading volume of about $1.06 billion on OpenSea. This accounts for 6.3% of the platform’s total trade volume.

OpenSea experienced a new high on Monday, according to analysts, such as Wu Blockchain. However, according to data from Rchen8 on Dune Analytics, the previous all-time peak (ATH) of $322 million was recorded on August 29.

On January 2nd, opensea's trading volume was as high as 240 million U.S. dollars, a record high. The trading volume in December again exceeded US$3 billion. The main reason is the popularity of BAYC & MAYC again.

— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) January 3, 2022

In December, OpenSea’s monthly trade volume topped $3.24 billion, falling just 5.3% short of the platform’s ATH of $3.42 billion in August. Within the first four days of January, the NFT market has already seen more than $700 million in trading volume. If the momentum continues throughout this month, the record highs stand to be broken.

Bored Ape Mania

The recent craze surrounding the BAYC and MAYC NFTs may be a factor in OpenSea’s increasing volumes. The increase is also attributed to other projects by Yuga Labs. The Bored Ape Yacht Club is a 10,000-collection NFT depicting an ape with various characteristics and visual features designed by Yuga Labs.

The MAYC is presently the most popular NFT project, according to CryptoSlam data, with a seven-day volume of $93.2 million on secondary markets. The BAYC NFTs came next in second place with $88.4 million.

Over the last 30 days, MAYC and BAYC have generated $189.7 million and $182.6 million, respectively. According to rankings, they are presently the third- and fourth-most successful NFT collections.

In terms of daily trading volume, the MAYC has gained $18.7 million in additional secondary volume, while the BAYC has seen $14 million in volume. According to OpenSea, the floor price for BAYC NFTs presently stands at 67 Ether (ETH), or roughly $250,000. The MAYC NFTs are currently selling for 15.87 ETH, or $59,300.