In a recent development, the community-oriented NFT marketplace, Magic Eden, has made a noteworthy decision to temporarily suspend Bitcoin BRC-20 trading in a bid to “safeguard users until a unanimous consensus is reached across the BRC-20 network.” However, the official statement by Magic Eden assures users that this temporary halt on Bitcoin BRC-20 trading will not impact other trading activities on their platform.
Magic Eden, a prominent NFT marketplace operating on the Solana blockchain, has been a favorite among NFT enthusiasts since its launch on September 17, 2021. Notably, Magic Eden unveiled a “fully audited” marketplace for Bitcoin Ordinals in March 2023. Their official press release proclaimed:
“Magic Eden (“The Company”), a leading cross-chain NFT platform, is pleased to announce the introduction of a dedicated Bitcoin marketplace for digital collectibles. As the sole fully audited marketplace within the Bitcoin Ordinals ecosystem to date, it offers an industry-leading user interface and experience that will provide collectors with a familiar trading environment.”
With the launch of this Bitcoin marketplace, Magic Eden formed strategic partnerships with 13 renowned NFT collections, such as Taproot Wizards, Inscribed Pepes, and Bitcoin Bandits. These collaborations aimed to offer users a “Phantom-like experience” by integrating two non-custodial wallets, Hiro and Xverse, at the time of launch.
Nevertheless, in response to a significant decline in BRC-20 activity, Magic Eden has opted to suspend BRC-20 trading on their platform. Well-known Chinese reporter Colin Wu, who shares updates on his official page on X called Wu Blockchain, shed light on this surprising move by Magic Eden. He delved into the deteriorating state of BRC-20, particularly after the sats mint and the emergence of Rune, a potential BRC-20 alternative. Wu stated, “Since the conclusion of the sats mint, BRC-20 activity has seen a substantial decrease, with daily transactions now accounting for less than 3% of the transactions on the Bitcoin blockchain.”