Solana NFTs hit $5B in sales, Greg Solano takes reins at Yuga Labs: Nifty Newsletter

In this week’s newsletter, read about Solana-based nonfungible tokens (NFTs) recovering sales volume after a four-month slump, find out about Yuga Labs’ new CEO, and check out how crypto investigator ZachXBT recovered stolen NFT proceeds. In other news, find a new metaverse is partnering with stablecoin-issuer Circle to add in-game wallets, and don’t forget our Nifty News roundup, featuring South Korea’s plans to consult United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler on NFTs. 

Solana NFTs hit $5 billion in all-time sales volume

NFTs based on Solana have reached a new all-time sales volume milestone. On Feb. 23, NFT data tracker CryptoSlam showed that the all-time sales volume for Solana NFTs already exceeded $5 billion. In addition, the total number of NFT transactions on the blockchain has also reached around 43 million.

After a four-month slump, Solana NFTs picked up in October 2023, with a 192% jump in sales volume from $28 million to $82 million. The momentum continued through December 2023, when the chain recorded its second-highest monthly sales volume of $365 million.

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BAYC co-creator Greg Solano takes up reins as Yuga Labs CEO

Greg Solano, one of the creators behind the popular Bored Ape Yacht Club collection, has become the new CEO of Yuga Labs. Solano, who also co-founded the company, will replace Daniel Alegre, who has been CEO since April 2023.

In an X post, Solano said he is “stepping back in” as the NFT company’s CEO, saying he’s ready to take the reins and bring the firm to a new chapter.

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ZachXBT recovers majority of $177,000 stolen NFT proceeds after nine-month probe

On-chain sleuth ZachXBT has recovered most of the funds from the sale of a stolen DeGods NFT, which was taken from its original owner through a phishing scam in May 2023. The crypto investigator shared the results of a nine-month investigation into the theft, revealing on Feb. 24 that most of the funds were returned to the owner.

The hackers sold the NFT for 99 Ether (ETH) in May, worth around $177,000 at the time. The pseudonymous crypto investigator said that a “decent chunk” of the money has already been returned to the victim.

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PUBG publisher taps Circle to integrate in-game wallet on a new metaverse

Overdare — a joint venture between software company Naver Z and PUBG: Battlegrounds publisher Krafton — has announced a partnership with the stablecoin issuer Circle to integrate in-game wallets into its metaverse.

Circle’s wallet service will allow game content creators to have a Web3 wallet to receive USD Coin (USDC) payouts for the content they create. The metaverse will also integrate the USDC stablecoin to settle transactions in-game.

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Nifty News: Yuga cuts non-royalty markets, South Korea to discuss NFTs with Gary Gensler

Meanwhile, South Korean financial authorities plan to have an NFT-focused discussion with U.S. SEC Chair Gensler. According to local media reports, South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service Chairman, Lee Bok-hyun, will begin a discussion with Gensler in May.

In other news, Yuga Labs has removed some of its NFT collections from marketplaces that do not support royalties for all creators. The company published a list of projects that will only be available on NFT trading platforms supporting royalties.

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Thanks for reading this digest of the week’s most notable developments in the NFT space. Come again next Wednesday for more reports and insights into this actively evolving space.