Presently, one of the most vibrant areas of interest on Ethereum, apart from DeFi, is the NFT space.
NFTs , for non-fungible tokens NFTs are crafted to be perfect digital collectibles, gaming assets, and more.
Consequently, some of the most buzzworthy initiatives in the NFT space recently have been NFT marketplaces. Among these is Rarible, which has gained significant traction after moving towards a community-driven marketplace model. Rarible Today, we're diving into this burgeoning marketplace to understand its appeal and explore what makes it a rising star in the NFT realm.
The introduction of $RARI ignites curiosity
How Does Rarible Work?
With your wallet connected, you can begin creating NFTs and exploring Rarible's marketplace for collectibles. The platform's main strengths are:
It is open to all users, as opposed to other well-known NFT platforms that restrict NFT minting to approved applicants. In this regard, Rarible is a do-it-yourself platform accessible to everyone.
- A straightforward and intuitive user interface. This is crucial as navigating crypto platforms can often be challenging.
- In July, Rarible ventured into unexplored territory by launching $RARI, marking the NFT economy's debut governance token initiative. As stated by the team back then:
The Fusion of NFTs and DeFi Gaining Popularity, with Rarible Making a Mark
\"Driven by the desire to empower our community to shape decisions and encourage active involvement, we're launching our governance token. This project-management model has shown success in the DeFi industry, and we're thrilled to introduce the NFT space's first governance token.\"
Regarding $RARI's distribution, a segment of the token supply was first airdropped to general NFT collectors, while ongoing, Rarible users can earn tokens through trading on the platform. Buyers and sellers weekly receive 50% of their Rarible trade value back in $RARI tokens, essentially rewarding early users to help grow the platform.
Furthermore, upcoming plans allow users to leverage their $RARI tokens to vote on the future directions of Rarible's roadmap and settings through the Rarible DAO.
While $RARI distribution encourages regular users, it also incentivizes wash traders—individuals who artificially trade art with themselves to accumulate more $RARI tokens.
Tackling the Wash Trading Problem
For instance, by late July, NonFungible.com, an NFT analytics platform, announced they were dropping Rarible data due to wash trading events on the site.
On a positive note, Rarible has ramped up efforts to ban wash traders. Although it's akin to playing whack-a-mole, leadership remains vigilant and committed to enhancing their preventative measures.
On September 8th, investment firm CoinFund shared its investment rationale on the NFT economy, coupled with
CoinFund’s In
an undisclosed investment in Rarible. announced Explaining Rarible’s alignment with their interests, CoinFund’s Jake Brukhman, a recognized NFT analyst, shared:
\"The Rarible team consistently surpasses expectations in improving user experience for both crypto enthusiasts and newcomers. Today, Rarible offers state-of-the-art NFT creation features: support for ERC-721 and ERC-1155 standards, multi-edition minting, on-chain collection customization, and creator verification and moderation. On the demand side, top-tier tools are emerging for discovery, engagement, and showcasing works. New to blockchain? Friendlier user experiences are facilitated by Magic and Zerion integrations, plus upcoming credit card support.\"
Beyond The LAO’s investment in SuperRare, CoinFund's investment in Rarible in 2020 is notable because 1) it's among the initial investments of its type, and 2) it hints at more similar investments going forward. This move was a catalyst, drawing attention and interest towards Rarible.
The $RARI token price was $2.10 at the start of September 8th, according to data. Following the CoinFund announcement, a wave of new users and traders emerged, resulting in significant buying pressure.
$RARI Starts to Liftoff This Week
The surge in buying lasted two days, just enough to elevate $RARI's price to an all-time high of $10.91 on September 10th. Trade activity around the token has since mellowed; as of Friday when this was written, $RARI hovered around $7.89. CoinGecko Nevertheless, the +3x price increase this week underscores the mounting enthusiasm and attention surrounding the NFT industry. More individuals are becoming interested, and consequently, capital is flowing in.
In the DeFi sphere, one of the cherished projects is yEarn, a yield-making initiative by Andre Cronje utilizing Ethereum’s money legos creatively.
yEarn develops new offerings rapidly, such that their recent rollout of yInsure wasn't shocking. Put simply, yInsure permits enthusiasts to obtain tokenized insurance for diverse DeFi engagements.
The yInsure Angle
These insurance policies are tokenized as NFTs, making them easily tradable on platforms such as Rarible. That's exactly what users have commenced doing.
Traders swiftly began listing yInsure NFTs on Rarible, prompting the marketplace to enhance asset support in mere hours. The perk? Those users can earn $RARI while selling these NFTs, marking a classic win-win in cryptoeconomics!
Example: this contract insures 200 ETH's worth of
smart contract risk, valid till October 27, 2020.
Today we're releasing support for NFT #yinsurance , launched last week by @iearnfinance and underwritten by @nexusmutual to cover DeFi protocols risks.
The current collaboration between Rarible and yEarn communities is forming a bridge between NFT and DeFi, allowing members to explore the other side, often for the first time. @BalancerLabs This synergy has prompted numerous projects to closely monitor NFT-DeFi collaborations like yInsure NFTs on Rarible. Moving forward, you can anticipate such collaborations thriving as the DeFi and NFT fields converge. Thus, as growth continues, Rarible stands as a significant early pathfinder. pic.twitter.com/REHkD7Txko
— Rarible (@rarible) September 9, 2020
Founded by Alexei Falin and Alex Salnikov at the start of 2020, Rarible provides an accessible, self-custodied market platform for Ethereum users. To get started, you visit the Rarible website and connect your wallet (support is available for MetaMask, Fortmatic, WalletConnect, and WalletLink).
One fascinating facet of the $RARI distribution is encouraging users to list on Rarible.
This intriguing development arises because other NFT platforms like OpenSea and Cargo don't currently offer reward tokens, and so, recently, we've observed more users moving NFTs from other platforms to Rarible to earn $RARI.
A Gravity Well for NFTs?
This gravitational pull might generate enough momentum to establish Rarible as a formidable force in the NFT sector for years.
William M. Peaster is a talented writer and editor focusing on Ethereum, Dai, and Bitcoin topics in the crypto space. He has contributed to Blockonomi, Binance Academy, Bitsonline, and other platforms. He's passionate about smart contracts, DAOs, dApps, and the Lightning Network, and is currently learning Solidity. Reach him on Telegram at @wmpeaster.
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