Bybit, one of many world’s main cryptocurrency exchanges, has introduced that it’ll shut its NFT market efficient April 8. The transfer comes as a part of a strategic choice to refocus on the corporate’s core companies, whereas additionally addressing rising safety challenges and a broader NFT market downturn.
A Sudden Transfer Reflecting Market Developments and Safety Dangers
The closure follows a serious cybersecurity breach in February, which resulted within the theft of roughly $1.46 billion in digital belongings—one of many largest crypto-related hacks in historical past.
Citing each inside technique and exterior threats, Bybit has urged customers to switch their NFT holdings to exterior wallets earlier than the deadline. The platform emphasised its aim to strengthen person safety and streamline operations in its most important enterprise areas.
NFT Exercise Continues to Decline in 2025
Bybit’s exit displays the broader decline in NFT buying and selling quantity. In Q1 2025, world NFT gross sales dropped by 63%, falling from $4.1 billion in the identical interval final 12 months to $1.5 billion. March alone witnessed a 76% drop in gross sales—from $1.6 billion in 2024 to simply $373 million this 12 months.
Regardless of the downturn, some initiatives defied the development. The Pudgy Penguins assortment noticed a 13% rise in gross sales, reaching $72 million, whereas Doodles boosted its visibility with a $32 million McDonald’s partnership. Ethereum-based Milady Maker additionally gained traction with a 58% surge in investor curiosity.
NFT Platforms Exit Whereas Others Evolve
Bybit isn’t the one platform stepping away from NFTs. Lengthy-standing NFT market X2Y2, which launched in 2021, not too long ago introduced its closure after three years of operation, redirecting focus to a brand new AI-powered crypto undertaking.
Equally, tech large LG revealed plans to close down its TV-based NFT platform, Artwork Lab, on June 17, ending an initiative launched through the 2022 NFT increase.
These selections replicate the evolving panorama of NFTs, the place some gamers are exiting, whereas others pivot to rising alternatives.
Hope for NFTs within the Subsequent Chapter
Regardless of widespread closures, NFTs will not be useless. Analysts argue that the sector is present process transformation, moderately than disappearing. New functions in Web3 gaming, tokenized bodily belongings, and next-generation digital id might pave the way in which for a brand new period of NFTs.
In March, funding agency Canary Capital filed for an NFT-focused ETF with the U.S. Securities and Trade Fee (SEC). The proposed ETF would spend money on Pudgy Penguins NFTs, their utility token PENGU, and NFT-related cryptocurrencies like Ethereum (ETH) and Solana (SOL).
Bybit Stays Dedicated to Blockchain Regardless of Exit
Whereas stepping away from the NFT sector, Bybit stays devoted to blockchain innovation. In response to February’s safety breach, the corporate pledged to overtake its safety infrastructure, with up to date protocols and a renewed give attention to person safety.
Ultimate Ideas: An Finish or a New Starting?
Bybit’s NFT market closure is just not essentially a sign of the tip—however moderately the start of a brand new chapter. Because the NFT market contracts, trade gamers are repositioning, laws are tightening, and applied sciences are evolving. The sector could also be at a turning level, able to reinvent itself for the subsequent part of digital possession.
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