Key Insights:

• Ordinal inscriptions defy Bitcoin’s price drop, accounting for 84.9% of network activity on August 21.
• Contrary to reports of declining NFT usage, Ordinals inscriptions remain robust, generating $53.4 million in fees.
• Despite their ongoing dominance, the future of Bitcoin Ordinals NFTs remains uncertain as market perceptions shift.

Despite Bitcoin’s recent price downturn, Ordinals inscriptions continue to sway the cryptocurrency’s network activity. Remarkably, on August 21, Ordinals inscriptions and BRC-20 minting constituted nearly 85% of Bitcoin network transactions. This is a significant revelation, especially in light of Bitcoin’s price decline and the perception that the excitement around Bitcoin NFTs has waned.

Ordinals developer “Leonidas” underscored this trend on August 21, noting that Bitcoin had logged 530,788 transactions in the past 24 hours, with an impressive 450,785 being Ordinals-related transactions. “Despite claims that ‘Ordinals are dead,’ they have undeniably accounted for 84.9% of Bitcoin’s activity,” he remarked.

Dune Analytics reported over 400,000 Ordinals inscriptions supporting this trend on August 20. Concurrently, Bitinfocharts recorded a daily Bitcoin transaction count of approximately 556,000. This indicates that on August 20, Ordinals-related activity comprised more than three-quarters of the network’s total transactions.

85% of on-chain bitcoin transactions in the past 24 hours are ordinals related

EIGHTY FIVE PERCENT

the main usecase of the bitcoin chain is ORDINALS pic.twitter.com/PCZt4if5jf

— Udi Wertheimer (@udiWertheimer) August 20, 2023

Industry analyst Eric Wall further observed that, over the week, 54% of Bitcoin network transactions were Ordinals. Dune Analytics data reveals there have been 25.5 million Ordinals inscriptions, generating $53.4 million in fees on the Bitcoin network. BRC-20 token minting dominates inscriptions, with 1.9 million minted in the past week.

Weekly inscriptions by type (Source: Dune Analytics)

Conflicting Views on Ordinals NFTs

However, a DappRadar report from August 17 suggested that Ordinals NFT usage and sales volume had plummeted since reaching a peak in May, leading some crypto commentators to declare the hype as having “fizzled out.” It’s important to note that this report focused on the sales and trading volume of NFTs minted on the Bitcoin network, not the actual inscription activity, which remains robust.

However, this hype has died down in recent months, which has likely contributed to the decline in #trading volume.
What does the future hold for #Bitcoin Ordinals NFTs?

It is unclear what the future holds for Bitcoin Ordinals NFTs.

— Cheeky Crypto (@CheekyCrypto) August 20, 2023

Bitcoin Ordinals are unique asset artifacts that allow data to be inscribed onto a Satoshi, the smallest unit of a Bitcoin. The protocol was introduced in January, and the subsequent months saw a surge in inscription activity as thousands were minted on the Bitcoin network. This led to network congestion and a spike in transaction fees, peaking in April and May.

Uncertainty Surrounds Bitcoin Ordinals NFTs

Despite the ongoing prevalence of Ordinals inscriptions on the Bitcoin network, the future of Bitcoin Ordinals NFTs is still uncertain. The recent observations contrast with the DappRadar report, which claimed a decline in Ordinals NFT usage and sales volume since their peak in May. However, the report focused on the sales and trading volume of NFTs minted on the Bitcoin network, not the actual inscription activity, which remains high.

In summary, while the future of Bitcoin Ordinals NFTs is still up in the air, the enduring dominance of Ordinals inscriptions on the Bitcoin network suggests they are far from obsolete. The recent drop in Bitcoin’s price and the perception that the excitement around Bitcoin NFTs has waned have not deterred the continued growth of Ordinal’s inscriptions.