Bitcoin network NFT projects are thriving, but the infrastructure still needs improvement.

Recently, the NFT minting activity on the Bitcoin network has attracted widespread attention, and the community's attitude has gradually shifted from initial indifference to active participation. According to the data, there are currently 33,517 NFT collectibles minted on the Bitcoin network, with 12,102 NFT collectibles minted in a single day on February 9.

The NFT project Bitcoin Punks, based on the Bitcoin mainnet Ordinals protocol, completed the minting of 10,000 collectibles at 3 PM on February 9. The project team is currently collecting and analyzing existing inscriptions and verifying the first upload nodes of each Punk. It is expected that within 24 hours, the final JSON mapping of the 10,000 collectible set will be written into the Ordinals protocol.

Bitcoin Punks claims to be the first project to successfully migrate the original Ethereum CryptoPunks to the Bitcoin blockchain. To ensure authenticity, the team is verifying the hash values of each image uploaded to Ordinals one by one, comparing them with the original 10,000 Punk images. The link pointing to Bitcoin Punks is the first occurrence of the inscription (with the lowest ID), which contains the corresponding hash value on the Ordinals protocol.

The minting process of Bitcoin Punks is relatively complex, requiring users to create a specific type of wallet and complete the minting through specific steps. The minting cost is around $25, and there are currently no over-the-counter transactions. Due to the slower payment speed of the Bitcoin network, there may be cases where multiple people successfully pay but only one person receives the collectible, which poses certain risks to users.

Although there are rumors that the Bitcoin Punks secondary market price has reached over 1 Bitcoin, with an increase of more than a hundred times, there are currently no transaction records to support this claim, making it baseless. Investors should treat such information with caution to avoid being misled and incurring losses.

The Current Development Status of Bitcoin Network NFTs

On January 21, 2023, the Ordinals protocol version 0.4.0 was released, officially introducing NFTs to the Bitcoin mainnet. This protocol supports the creation of "digital artifacts" on the Bitcoin network, which can include various formats such as images, PDFs, videos, and audio. Since its launch, the number of NFT projects based on Ordinals has rapidly increased, primarily focusing on image content.

Currently, multiple well-known NFT projects have emerged on the Bitcoin network:

1. Bitcoin Rock: The first Bitcoin network NFT project issued based on the Ordinals protocol, with a total issuance of 100. It is reported that its current transaction price has reached 1 Bitcoin.

2. Ordinal Punks: PFP collectibles minted within the first 650 inscriptions on Bitcoin, with an issuance of 100 pieces. The minting price is 0.01 Bitcoin, and the current highest transaction price has reached 9.5 Bitcoin (approximately $241,000).

3. Bitcoin Shrooms: Claimed to be the last bastion of human digital art.

4. Shadow Hats: Official social media accounts and website have been established, but minting has not yet started.

In addition, some cross-chain NFT projects have begun to emerge, such as On the Edge of Oblivion, which is issued on the Ethereum network and promises future cross-chain to the Bitcoin network.

Current Status of Bitcoin Network NFT Infrastructure

The NFT infrastructure of the Bitcoin network is still in its early stages, and there are many inconveniences compared to mature networks like Ethereum:

1. The minting process is complex: it requires learning how to create different types of wallets, distinguishing between different payment methods, and synchronizing the Bitcoin full node.

2. Inconvenient transactions: There is a lack of convenient and secure trading platforms similar to OpenSea, mainly relying on over-the-counter trading or custody.

3. Full node synchronization takes a long time: Personal synchronization of the Bitcoin full node requires a considerable amount of time.

4. Minting Failure Risk: Due to the adoption of the order number model, users cannot know in real-time whether a particular serial number has been successfully added to the blockchain, which may result in cases where payment is made but minting fails.

The emergence of the Ordinals protocol has boosted the activity of the Bitcoin network, with the average daily block size reaching a new three-year high. However, there are divisions within the community regarding the practice of issuing NFTs on the Bitcoin network. Supporters believe this will provide more financial use cases for Bitcoin and increase demand for block space; opponents argue that it deviates from Bitcoin's original intention as a peer-to-peer cash system and may drive up transaction fees.

Regardless, the launch of the Ordinals protocol has indeed attracted more users' attention and usage of the Bitcoin ecosystem. As the number of users increases and the wealth effect becomes apparent, the relevant infrastructure is expected to gradually improve. However, investors still need to be cautious, as the current NFT projects on the Bitcoin network are still in a chaotic state and carry high risks.