⚓️ ordinals vs ETH NFTs
⚓️ ordinals vs ETH NFTs
with the halving, everyone is talking about RUNES…the new Bitcoin protocol that makes sats (the smallest unit of Bitcoin) more tradeable.
today, 68% of runes are in the red from their launch. that sounds like a great way to RUNE your life, amirite?
on the whole, I see the development of runes as important. but the Runes protocol really just made me interested in Bitcoin’s more nonfungible options instead…as that’s what I care about more being the writer of an NFT newsletter after all.
so what are Bitcoin ordinals and inscriptions? and does their rise over the last year mean Ethereum NFTs are toast? 🍞
alpha ⚓
let’s start with the obvious: Bitcoin is culturally and financially the best crypto asset. there’s an argument to be made that it’s the best asset full stop.
for that reason, there are far more “Bitcoin maxis” than there are Ethereum ones.
that doesn’t mean that Ethereum has no culture or staying power, however. it just means that people care more about Bitcoin than they do any other chain (mostly) .
ordinals and inscriptions pose a big threat to Ethereum NFTs, for that reason.
but much like how Ethereum propped itself on the shoulders of Bitcoin and called itself a blue chip crypto asset, Bitcoin is now doing the same with NFTs.
inscriptions are a powerful mechanism because of their power to be on-chain and to be created in the more successful of the two assets.
but let’s not dismiss ETH NFTs here…
beta ⚓
the EVM (the Ethereum Virtual Machine) and its contract builders have done a lot of legwork in troubleshooting issues with putting JPGs onto the blockchain over the last few years…not to mention the culture they have already put on-chain too.
I dare you to find an Ordinals collection that is as half as recognizable as CryptoPunks or even Bored Apes.
that being said, Sats (more on these in a bit) and Ordinals do have the potential to be more historically relevant…which puts them in another tier of “digital collectibles”.
Ethereum NFTs still have the belt now in my opinion…but Bitcoin “NFTs” pose the biggest threat to their supremacy. Ethereum has all the history of NFTs currently, but if the chain cannot remain relevant, then their collectibles will suffer a similar fate to chain.
no one will care.
why do I think that Bitcoin is primed for a takeover? Sats show me why Bitcoin collectibles has incredible legs…
oh la la…
Sats if you don’t know are basically like collecting rare serial numbered dollar bills on Bitcoin. people want to collect them simply because of the technology they’re printed upon (much like US history buffs like to collect rare fiat currency).
what NBA Top Shot was for trading cards, Sats can be for coin collecting. it’s like buying rare and historically significant pennies on the blockchain. whether they have a JPG attached to them or not, they are in a unique position.
they can be the default collectible of the digital age.
gamma ⚓
the thing I imagine stopping Ordinals from completely running wild?
price.
the normal collector doesn’t have the money to crack into Ordinals or even Sats yet. projects rarely have the resources to incur the enormous inscription costs to put something on Bitcoin.
yet, people are still doing it. the Bitcoin Ordinals and Sats market are frothy.but
but at the end of the day, it’s all just speculation (all over again).
there are palindromes Sats for sale, which is how you know that people are speculating right now. remember when that ENS category was hot?
ultimately, there will be a market for these Sats and Ordinals and I feel it will settle at prices much less than they are now.
Ordinals and Sats are in their infancy and not unlike the NFT bull run of 2021, you (the layman NFT investor) do not have enough to spread across the entire Ordinals ecosystem to pick the winners. they’re just too dang expensive…even more so than ETH NFTs were gas was running wild!
delta ⚓
we constantly hear how the future is multichain.
there’s a world where many NFTs become recognized and chain truly doesn’t matter.
but as we speculate on what those entities are, it seems much safer to bet on Bitcoin than even Ethereum.
it’s why the Sats and Ordinals market has been going crazy lately. it makes sense to Bitcoin maxis (who are driving these markets) and it’s been aided by Bitcoin coming back and hitting ATHs.
marketplaces like MagicEden are making the buying and selling of Ordinals and Runes easier and the liquidity is moving almost entirely to Bitcoin.
the question then becomes…do ETH NFTs have the legs to compete with Ordinals and Sats in the long-term? or is Ethereum doomed to always be the little brother of Bitcoin?