As an analyst with a background in blockchain technology and finance, I find the recent developments in the NFT lending market absolutely fascinating. The surge in lending volumes and the dominance of Blend as the leading platform are clear indicators of the growing interest and adoption of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in the financial world.


The market for borrowing non-fungible tokens (NFTs) has experienced extraordinary growth, reaching a record-breaking $2.13 billion in the first quarter alone – representing a substantial 43.6% increase compared to the previous quarter.

According to data from CoinGecko, five of the six top platforms are seeing increased volumes.

Blend Dominates with 92.9% Market Share

In January 2024, the NFT lending market reached an all-time high of $0.9 billion in transactions, surpassing the previous record of $0.85 billion set in June 2023. Among all NFT lending platforms, Blend led the pack with a dominating market share of 92.9% and a remarkable monthly volume of $562.33 million in March 2024.

As an analyst, I’ve observed that since its debut in May 2023, Blend has maintained a strong market presence, with its monthly market share fluctuating between 88.8% and 96.5%. In the first quarter of 2024, there was a significant increase of 49.2% in Blend’s lending volume compared to the previous quarter, amounting to $2.02 billion.

In March 2024, Arcade and NFTfi were the second and third most widely used platforms following Ethereum, accounting for 2.8% and 2.2% of the market share respectively. Their lending volumes stood at $16.94 million and $13.32 million respectively.

In the first quarter of 2024, Arcade achieved a new record of $39.46 million, representing a 37.1% growth from the previous quarter. Simultaneously, NFTfi experienced a significant surge in lending volume with a 48.3% increase, reaching a total of $35.88 million.

As an analyst, I would describe it this way: Among the remaining DeFi platforms under consideration, X2Y2, BendDAO, and Parallel Finance accounted for a combined market share of roughly between 0.5% and 0.8%.

Incentives and Bitcoin Ordinals Influence

To encourage greater user engagement, NFT lending platforms are rolling out new motivators for increased trading. For instance, Arcade, which is financially supported by Pantera Capital, launched its “Clash of Clans” airdrop promotion towards the end of February.

As a researcher, I’ve come across an intriguing development: the ARCD initiative intends to grant 750 ARCD tokens to each of the 4,000 eligible wallets. This distribution aligns with similar efforts by other platforms such as X2Y2 and BendDAO, who have initiated token launches for their respective communities.

Moving forward, CoinGecko has identified Bitcoin Ordinals as a emerging trend that could significantly influence the NFT lending market. At present, Ethereum NFT collections account for the majority of loans. However, with the growing popularity of Bitcoin Ordinals, the NFT lending market’s dynamics may undergo a transformation.

Founded in May 2023, Blend functions based on the peer-to-peer lending concept. Borrowers can utilize their Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) as security for loans, while potential lenders provide attractive interest rates in return.

Fixed-interest loans lack expiration dates, providing borrowers with the flexibility to repay at their own pace. Simultaneously, lenders have the option to exit their investments by auctioning off the collateralized NFTs using a Dutch auction method.

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2024-04-27 19:28