Ethereum NFT market recovers to 2022 levels… OpenSea rewards and utility expansion drive growth

The number of traders in the Ethereum non-fungible token (NFT) market has recently surged to around 40,000, returning to levels seen in June 2022.

According to The Block on the 11th (local time), following the completion of beta testing and the official launch of OpenSea's next-generation platform OS2, the introduction of a new rewards program, 'Voyages', has led to a significant increase in NFT traders.

The 'Voyages' program provides users with 'XP' as rewards for engaging in various activities on the platform. This XP is expected to be used to determine eligibility for future airdrops of OpenSea's native token (SEA). As a result, OpenSea’s monthly active users reached 467,322 as of May 2025, marking the highest figure since 2022.

The recent move by major NFT companies to expand practical utilities beyond simple collectibles has also contributed to the increase in NFT traders. It is noted that, while a significant portion of speculative traders shifted to other markets such as meme coins in 2021, the current user base is more focused on utility.

Orange Cap Games, the developer of the Vibes trading card game, recently acquired the Moonbirds collection IP and hinted at the possibility of releasing a third card game utilizing Moonbirds. Mythical Games also announced plans to introduce digital assets featuring the Adidas brand in the soon-to-be-released FIFA Rivals and to build on the success of its own NFL Rivals mobile game.