Bitcoin Ordinals, an innovative method of generating non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on the Bitcoin blockchain through the process of inscribing, has resurfaced with renewed interest as the number of inscriptions crosses the impressive milestone of 3.5 million. This surge in activity follows the recent introduction of the BRC-69 token standard, which aims to enhance the cost efficiency of creating Ordinals.
According to data from Glassnode, the daily tally of new inscriptions has increased by over 250% since Luminex, the Ordinals launchpad, unveiled the BRC-69 token standard on July 3. The adoption of this modified version of the BRC-20 standard has effectively reduced the inscription costs for Ordinals by more than 90%.
Luminex, in a Twitter thread, highlighted the significance of the BRC-69 standard, stating, “With BRC69, we can reduce the costs of inscriptions for Ordinals collections by over 90%.” The simplified four-step process of inscribing traits, deploying collections, compiling collections, and minting assets contributes to the cost reduction. Moreover, Luminex emphasized the brilliance of the BRC-69 standard, as minters now only need to inscribe a single line of text instead of a complete image. The final image is then automatically rendered on all Ordinals frontends, utilizing on-chain resources and recursive inscriptions.
Despite the surge in the number of new inscriptions, the daily fees associated with these inscriptions have remained relatively stagnant, as reported by Dune Analytics. This trend indicates that the cost efficiency promised by the BRC-69 standard has been realized.
The inception of Ordinals in January brought the NFT and smart contract narrative to the Bitcoin blockchain, sparking investor interest in tokens such as STX, the native token of the Bitcoin layer 2 Stacks Network.
Glassnode’s analysis of the Ordinals boom reveals two distinct waves of activity. The first wave, which spanned from early February to late April, primarily featured image-based inscriptions. In contrast, the second wave, commencing in May, showcased a surge in text-based inscriptions with higher transaction fees.
“By inscription count, Wave 2 was an order of magnitude larger; however, activity has been in consistent decline since May. There has been a brief uptick in text inscriptions this week; nevertheless, unconfirmed transactions across Bitcoin mempools are starting to clear overall,” stated Glassnode’s weekly report published on Monday.
As Bitcoin NFTs and the Ordinals ecosystem continue to evolve, these recent developments highlight the resilience and adaptability of the blockchain technology, further fueling curiosity and investor enthusiasm within the crypto community.
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