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Azuki Leads NFT Volume Record With $2.51M

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Anime-themed NFT project Azuki has caught the eyes of many in the non-fungible market as it ranked first among leading NFT collections in 24-hour traded volume. An on-chain insight revealed that Azuki soaked up a trading volume of $2.51 million as 66 digital collectibles were sold on the secondary marketplace.

Following the launch of 10,000 Azuki NFTs in January 2022, its community members have resonated with the project’s anime background. Over the years, the project has explored various endeavors to make its IP popular. Among them was the project’s decision to create an anime-themed network in collaboration with the team behind the Arbitrum blockchain. The NFT project also developed a three-part anime anthology series dubbed Enter The Garden.

Azuki’s creator, Zagabond, recently hinted that the anime-themed project could soon launch a native crypto asset. Zagabond stressed that most altcoins lack appeal to retail traders because they have no real use case, product, or vision. However, the project’s creator stated that an anime-themed coin will likely dominate the market.

Many NFT projects have recently delved into the crypto world by launching native cryptocurrencies tied to their non-fungible brand. Pudgy Penguins, Magic Eden, Nifty Island, and more are among them.

While Azuki ranked first among NFT collections by traded volume ranking, Pudgy Penguins came second with $1.91 million after 32 NFT sales. Pudgy Penguins’ recently launched PENGU token has sparked engagement from crypto, NFT, and non-crypto natives. This likely aided its growth to the current record. Doodles V4 came third with a 24-hour traded volume of $1.11 million from 52 sales.

Interestingly, one of Azuki’s brainchilds, Azuki Elementals, took fourth position in this ranking, generating a 24-hour traded volume of $838.61K from 150 NFT sales. Although it shares some similarities with the Azuki collection, this 20K-piece project features the four elements within the garden – water, fire, lightning, and earth.

Topping the chart shows how much effort Azuki puts into bringing its project to the mainstream audience, especially those enthusiastic about animes. The project likely has more anime-themed initiatives to unveil in the coming year. Time will tell how this unfolds.

Solana’s Jito staking pool exceeding $100M in monthly tips: Kairos Research

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Solana staking pool Jito clocked monthly revenues from priority fees and tips of more than $100 million in November and December, according to a Dec. 26 note from Kairos Research, a cryptocurrency researcher. 

In 2024, Jito’s validators scaled tip revenues by an average of 32% each month, Kairos said. Monthly income peaked in November at approximately $210 million. 

Jito’s growing tip revenues reflect the Solana network’s surging popularity. They also flag validators’ rising earnings from prioritizing certain transactions over others, a practice known as Maximum Extractable Value (MEV).

Source: Kairos Research

Related: DeFi TVL nears 2021 highs on liquid restaking, Bitcoin L2s

MEV bounty

Users pay validators tips to prioritize transactions during block building and order certain transactions ahead of others within blocks. This helps users ensure transactions are properly executed but also contributes to higher transaction costs. 

In 2024, Solana’s validators earned more from MEV than Ethereum’s for the first time. This coincided with transaction fees on the Solana network nearly tripling from roughly 60,000 Solana (SOL) per day in January to more than 150,000 in October, according to data from Dune Analytics.

As of Dec. 26, upward of 93% of Solana validators use Jito’s software to maximize earnings from block-building, according to Jito’s developer, Jito Labs. 

Source: Dune Analytics

SOL restaking

Jito, which also issues liquid restaking token (LRT) JitoSOL, has emerged as Solana’s most popular decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, with nearly $2.75 billion in total value locked, according to DefiLlama. 

Restaking involves taking a token that has already been staked — posted as collateral with a validator in exchange for rewards — and using it to secure other protocols simultaneously. LRTs represent a tradable claim on a pool of restaked assets.

In October, holders of Jito’s governance token, JTO, voted to distribute a portion of tip revenues to JitoSOL restakers. According to Kairos, Jito plans to route 0.15% of tip revenue to JitoSOL restakers. Validators will continue to pocket an overwhelming majority of income from tips. 

As of Dec. 26, Jito touts yields of approximately 8.6% for JitoSOL restakers. Ethereum continues to dominate staking and restaking TVL, with top restaking protocol EigenLayer commanding nearly $15 billion, according to DefiLlama.

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