Bitcoin Ordinals: The Latest Trend in the Crypto World

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Bitcoin Ordinals are making waves in the crypto world, with creators increasingly opting to mint their unique digital assets on the Bitcoin network. This trend has taken the market by storm, with over 500,000 NFTs minted in recent months. We will explore the phenomenon of Bitcoin Ordinal NFTs, their growing popularity, and their challenges to the Bitcoin network.

Rapid Growth in Bitcoin Ordinals

According to Dune Analytics, the Bitcoin network has seen a significant increase in the creation of Ordinals, with over 520,200 minted in the last two months alone.

This growth is remarkable, especially when considering that less than 50,000 NFTs were minted just five weeks ago. Furthermore, March 9, 2023, marked the day with the most Ordinal transactions, with over 31,000 NFTs minted.

Most of these NFTs are in images, videos, and text, with around $2.6 million in combined transaction fees. Approximately 10,000 Ordinals are minted daily, with demand for this unique form of NFT only expected to grow.

Understanding Bitcoin Ordinal NFTs

Ordinal NFTs on the Bitcoin network are created by assigning ‘ordinals’ to each satoshi, which are then linked to various forms of information such as videos, text, and images.

Unlike Ethereum NFTs, there are no specific token standards. The inscriptions made are permanent and cannot be edited or changed.

Ease of Creation and Adoption

The growing popularity of Ordinals is largely attributed to the ease of creating them.

Initially, creating and managing Ordinal NFTs was only possible through the native wallet developed by Casey Rodarmor, the creator of this protocol. However, this tool required managing a full Bitcoin node and using lines of code that could have been more user-friendly.

Over time, different companies and programmers devised more accessible products to enable the adoption of this technology. As a result, wallet providers like Hiro and Sparrow now allow users to manage Bitcoin Ordinals effectively. Recently, UniSat Wallet also reviewed a feature that allows users to create and manage their Ordinal NFTs from their wallets.

Challenges Posed by Bitcoin Ordinal NFTs

Despite the growing adoption of Ordinal NFTs, a large portion of the Bitcoin community remains opposed to this form of a digital asset. Top developers like Adam Back and Luke Dashjr have previously spoken out against this type of NFT on the Bitcoin network.

Critics argue that Ordinal NFTs threaten the privacy, security, and efficiency of the Bitcoin network. In addition, storing data such as images, videos, and games is considered a waste of space and is believed to lead to congestion.

The Bitcoin network has recently suffered from congestion, with over 50,000 transactions yet to be confirmed, increasing transaction fees. While the popularity of Ordinal NFTs may exacerbate this problem, it is essential to note that NFTs are not the only reason for more network activity.