Nifty News: Trump NFTs pump after indictment, Q1 trading volume hits $4.7B and more

Following news of a New York Grand Jury vote to indict former President Donald Trump on March 30, the floor price for Trump Digital Trading Cards' officially licensed non-fungible token (NFT) project skyrocketed.

According according to OpenSea data, NFT traders were apparently spurred into action by the announcement, with the minimum price passing 0.46 Ether (ETH) or $835 at current prices, up to 0.6 ETH ($1090) on the same day.

Minimum price of Trump Digital Trading Cards. Source: OpenSea

When the project launched in December 2022, it offered Exclusive one-on-one experiences to certain NFT hodlers, such as private golf sessions, dinner parties, and conversations with Trump.

News of the impeachment could potentially affect the former president's ability to follow through on the experiences.

At the time of writing, the minimum price has fallen back to around the 0.51 ETH range. The price is still well above December's starting mint price of $99.

NFT sales hit $4.7 billion in Q1

According According to a March 30 report from blockchain analytics platform DappRadar, there was $4.7 billion worth of NFT trading volume in the first quarter of 2023, more than double that of the previous quarter.

The firm noted Blur's bullish market action, which took the market by storm during their token airdrop farming period in February.

The $4.7 billion came from 19.4 million NFT sales in the first quarter, an increase of 8.56%, with a total volume increase of 147% compared to $1.9 billion in the fourth quarter of 2022.

Total trading volume of the NFT market. Source: Dapp Radar

The Ethereum network accounted for a whopping $4.1 billion of the volume, with Solana in second place contributing $242 million, while Polygon came in third with $85 million for the quarter.

Trading volume by blockchains. Source: Dapp Radar

Square Enix Releases Final Fantasy NFT Trading Cards

Square Enix, the Japanese gaming giant behind the popular Final Fantasy franchise, has released NFT trading cards to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Final Fantasy VII.

The NFTs are part of the Final Fantasy VII Anniversary Art Museum Digital Card Plus Collection, which features five physical cards and a sixth digital NFT card.

Final Fantasy VII trading card art. Source: Square Enix

However, despite being called trading cards, Square Enix fixed on their website that NFTs cannot be traded or transferred at this stage unless the company decides to build a market in the future.

โ€œIf we decide to support the market in the future, we will notify you,โ€ the website says.

The packs released on March 31 and cost around $3.30 each, with the card artwork depicting various characters and settings from the iconic Final Fantasy VII game.

While it's unclear if the company intends to build a marketplace to support its digital collectibles, Square Enix has been gradually increasing your NFT and initiatives related to blockchain gaming in recent years, suggesting that something might be in the works.

NFT plane tickets

The Argentine low-cost airline Flybondi launched NFT domestic flight tickets under an initiative called โ€œTicket 3.0โ€.

According According to a rough translation of a March 29 announcement from the firm, users of the new service will be able to change names on tickets directly, transfer them to others, or give them away, essentially simplifying the firm's current ticketing models.

Ticket 3.0. Source: Flybondi

โ€œWith Ticket 3.0, our passengers will have greater flexibility and control over their trips because they will be able to easily and autonomously transfer, rename or gift their tickets,โ€ said Flybondi CEO Mauricio Sana, adding that:

"With this launch we seek to generate a positive impact in the aviation industry through innovation and the application of blockchain technology."

The movement stems from an expanded partnership with Ticketing company NFT TravelXwhich launched late last year and uses the Algorand blockchain for its tokenization.

Other nifty news:

Wakweli, a Web3 infrastructure protocol that issues certificates of authenticity, has officially partnered with the Layer 2 scaling platform Polygon to make NFT authentication possible.

On March 27, US-based ticketing company Ticketmaster announced a new feature: ticket sales with tokens โ€” allowing artists to reward NFT holders with exclusive benefits, including "special advance sales, preferred seating, personalized travel packages, and access to unique concert experiences."