A cryptocurrency company plans to completely shut down the operation of its NFT marketplace early next year, a move that could have a big impact on the NFT space.
Analysts find this move by Kraken somewhat unexpected, raising questions about what the future holds for NFTs given that Kraken is a major player in these types of tokens.
Closing in February 2025
Crypto platform Kraken has made the difficult decision to close its marketplace on February 27, 2025, saying goodbye to everyone who frequents the marketplace.
Crypto company officials said that starting November 27, the majority of the NFT market will be closed, such as auctions, listings and sale of NFTs, as the market gradually prepares to close its doors from here the first quarter of 2025.
However, the crypto platform clarified that even though many marketplace services will no longer be available, its users will still be able to withdraw their funds before February 27, 2025.
Kraken is shutting down its NFT marketplace nearly two years after the platform launched, saying it is shifting more resources to new products and services.
– Bloomberg (@business) November 26, 2024
Kraken Eyes develops new products
A Kraken spokesperson confirmed the company’s decision and the fate of its market next year.
The Kraken official said that this was one of the difficult choices they had to make given the importance of the NFT market for the crypto company.
The spokesperson explained that closing its marketplace would allow the crypto company to explore new avenues, adding that the company also wanted to develop new products and services.
In addition, Kraken assured that it has informed all its customers of the ongoing changes, adding that the platform’s support team will help users of the NFT marketplace transfer their assets to other wallets or to the existing wallet. self-preservation Kraken.
Workforce reductions
News of the NFT marketplace shutdown came almost just a month after the cryptocurrency platform downsized and named a new co-CEO.
In October this year, Kraken reduced its workforce by 15% after laying off 400 employees, saying it was part of its organizational restructuring.
At the same time, the crypto platform has named a new co-CEO, veteran Silicon Valley executive Arjun Sethi, who will help Dave Ripley co-manage the company as it strives to become the largest crypto platform in the world.
Stagnation
Analysts said NFT markets were thriving before, but this year they have seen a slowdown and even recorded one of their weakest performances in June.
Crypto analytics platform Artemis revealed that NFT markets saw a 50% decline in June, coinciding with the significant decline also experienced by major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana.
Meanwhile, Paul Thomas, CEO and founder of Somnia, noted earlier this year the waning hype around digital collectibles, noting that user demand for the utility of NFTs could have contributed to its slowdown.
Thomas added that another problem with NFTs is the “lack of originality.”
In the previous months, well-known figures in the crypto world have started dumping their NFTs, such as billionaire Mark Cuban.
On the positive side, Techreport predicted that the NFT market could still reach $2.8 billion by 2028 and its users could reach 14.67 million this year.
Featured image from Wall Of Traders, chart from TradingView
