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While Bitcoin-based nonfungible token (NFT) sales have declined, and the network has dropped to seventh out of 23 blockchains in sales this past month, Ordinal inscriptions continue unabated. The number of inscriptions linked to the Bitcoin blockchain is nearing 30 million. On September 3, a record 418,240 inscriptions were minted, marking the second-highest daily rate to date.
Bitcoin’s Ordinal Inscriptions Hit Second-Largest Daily Total
As of 10 a.m. Eastern Time on September 7, 2023, at block height 806,606, there are about 29.48 million Ordinal inscriptions tied to the Bitcoin blockchain. Bitcoin miners have to date received an estimated 1,976.62 BTC, valued at $50.85 million at current exchange rates, from Ordinal inscriptions. Daily inscriptions continue at a rapid pace, with September 3 seeing the second-highest number at 418,240.
The peak number of Ordinal inscriptions was on July 30, 2023, with the third-highest daily rate on August 20, 2023. Given the current trajectory, the number of Ordinal inscriptions on the BTC chain will likely exceed 30 million this weekend. Of the nearly 30 million inscriptions today, 17.53 million are in the “text/plain;charset=utf-8” format, and 10.17 million are in “text/plain.” The remaining inscriptions encompass formats such as image files, videos, GIFs, and software applications.
In addition to a surge in daily inscriptions, the inscriptions per block maintain impressively high figures. Moreover, data from Dune Analytics indicates that, as of September 3, recursive inscriptions tally approximately 148,568. “Recursives” amplify the versatility and composability of inscriptions and infuse an element of unpredictability into them. Dune Analytics metrics show Ordinal marketplace sales totaling $308.49 million to date.
That volume comes from 714,913 trades involving 177,573 unique users on platforms such as Okx, Unisat, Magic Eden, Gamma, Open Ordex, Ordinals Wallet, Ordswap, and Ordinals Market. Okx, Unisat, and Magic Eden have the most significant volumes. Cryptoslam.io data indicates that Bitcoin’s all-time volume stands at $539.71 million, involving 154,350 buyers and 146,898 sellers in 781,431 transactions.
