Eden Garden claims that plaintiffs losses were caused by market forces and not any fault on their part. Reddit’s Collectible Avatars NFT Program also faces uncertainties after Bianca Wyler, its director, left. NFTs sold $8.83 Billion in 2024, an amount that was slightly higher than 2023. Jeju Island in South Korea recently announced that it will launch NFT Tourist Cards by 2025, to appeal to younger tourists.
Eden Gallery defends itself against NFT lawsuit
Eden Gallery Group has filed in New York a motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by 36 holders of non-fungible (NFT). This lawsuit, which was filed in October, accuses both the gallery and the artist Gal Yosef, of fraud, unjustenriched, and violating New York General Business Law with respect to “Meta Eagle Club”, a collection of non-fungible tokens.
Plaintiffs allege that the project was “a rug pull” because it generated over $13 million in revenue between November 2023 and February 2022. They claim certain false statements were made to them, leading them to pay too much for digital assets.
Eden Gallery, in its motion for dismissal, argued that all claims were baseless and that any losses suffered by plaintiffs could be attributed to the general decline of the NFT industry, rather than to fraudulent activity. Eden Gallery also emphasized that NFTs from its Meta Eagle Club Collection were released during an era of high market demand in early 2022. However, the market as a whole has seen a significant decline since then. The gallery also claimed that NFTs are digital art, not investments, and dismissed plaintiffs losses on the grounds of market forces, rather than its own wrongdoing.
It was also stated in the motion that plaintiffs individual damages claims, which ranged from $1,224 up to $72,219 did not reach the threshold required by federal courts of $75,000. Aggregation of claims were not permitted. Meta Eagle Club NFT’s floor price has plummeted from 0.6 ETH or $1,800 to just 0.0051ETH or $17. This is a massive drop from the launch price in February 2022 of 0.6ETH or $1,800.
Meta Eagle club floor price ( OpenSea )
The future of Reddit’s NFTs is uncertain
After the departure of Bianca Wyler, who was its director, Reddit’s Collectible Avatars NFT Program also faced scrutiny. Wyler announced her departure from Reddit in a LinkedIn posting on January 6. She said she was happy with her contributions to the program, but also expressed her regret about the change. Reddit users were concerned about her exit because some of her recent comments had been deleted. Others feared that the NFTs would be discontinued as a result.
Reddit Collectible Avatars, unique NFTs that are hosted on Polygon’s blockchain and often feature the platform’s alien mascot, were introduced in July 2022. These avatars can be integrated into profiles, giving users access to perks such as “special comment treatment.” According to Dune Analytics, they were created by independent artists in limited editions.
The sales of avatars, despite their initial success, struggled to keep up momentum. In the last months of 2024, secondary sales volume hovered around $100,000. The trading activity has also decreased from the peak of 2022.
Wyler who joined Reddit June 2024 pointed out that it was already down from the bull run of its previous years and needed a strategic approach to revive it. In the first three months, Wyler reported that she had optimized the program, by enhancing community sentiment and increasing sales and new creations.
Wyler described Wyler’s departure as a part of “natural shifts,” which are seen often in companies such as Reddit, X and Meta, as they adjust to new technologies and changing priorities. She is unsure of the future direction of the Collectible Avatars Program, but she believes that Reddit’s community will remain its top priority.
NFTs end 2024 with a bang
NFTs ended the year 2024 with a bang, surpassing 2023’s sales by more than $100 million. Data from CryptoSlam shows that NFTs reached $8.83billion in 2024. This was an increase of 1.1% compared to $8.7billion in 2023.
Ethereum and Bitcoin tied for the top spot in terms of sales volume, each contributing $3.1 billion, with Solana in third position at $1.4 billion. Ethereum was the top blockchain in terms of all-time NFT sales, with $43.3 billion. Solana came second with $6.1 billion followed by Bitcoin-based NFTs at $4.9 billion.
The Top 5 Blockchains by All-Time NFT Sales (CryptoSlam )
Even though 2024 saw a growth of 5%, sales were much lower in volume than 2021 or 2022. NFT sales in 2021 were $15.7 billion, 43.9% more than the record set in 2024. In 2022, sales reached $23.7 billion.
Yat Siu, chairman of Animoca Brands is optimistic and believes that NFTs will surpass these levels in the future as crypto markets expand. Siu predicted that NFT volumes would reach billions in a flourishing crypto-ecosystem.
After a seven-month decline, NFT sales unexpectedly resurged in the latter half of 2024. In October, sales began to improve, with a volume of $353 millions, up 18% from the low in September. In November, sales reached $562 millions, a record high for six months. With $877 millions in sales for December, it was the 5th best month so far of 2024. Ethereum collections contributed $482 millions to December’s recovery, which was the largest part of it.
The top 5 CryptoSlam collections by December 2024.
Pudgy Penguins topped the list of top NFT collections in December with sales totaling $115,000,000. Azuki and LilPudgys were also popular, as well as CryptoPunks. Doodles and Bored Ape yacht club. These collections collectively generated sales of $141,000,000. In December, Bitcoin-based NFTs generated $172 million while Solana collections contributed $100 million.
Jeju Island will launch NFT tourist cards in 2025
Jeju Island in South Korea, the largest tourist destination plans to introduce NFT cards to its visitors by 2025. This will attract younger tourists. Local reports claim that the goal is to attract millennials, Generation Z and other younger generations by providing digital tourist cards tied to NFTs. These cards come with benefits like discounts and travel subsidies. The full launch will be preceded by a trial phase.
Jeju has been embracing the blockchain technology for many years. It is known as a hiking trail and a resort destination. In 2021, it even launched a COVID-19-based blockchain contact tracking app. Local officials in March 2024 discussed the potential of blockchains and NFTs to boost the economy on the island, as well as their possible applications for tourism and fishing.
Jeju Island
This initiative came amid an increase in interest in crypto in South Korea. 610,000 users are expected to join the market by November 2024, which will bring the total up to 15,6 million, or about 30 percent of the country’s population. Jeju is hoping that its NFT tourism cards will attract younger generations.
