As we enter a period when NFTs have lost their prominence across the industry, this document outlines what has been attempted on NEAR Protocol, including trading marketplaces, comic books, NFT lending, NFT ticketing, NFT link drops, NFT swaps, generative marketplaces, AccountFi, and open source infrastructure.

What is unique about NEAR NFT

• Multilisting: you can list to multiple marketplaces at once
• AccountFI: you can leverage to sell accounts

Eras

The NEAR Protocol, launched in April 2020, has fostered a vibrant NFT ecosystem due to its low transaction fees, fast transaction speeds, and eco-friendly Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus mechanism. The history of NFTs on NEAR can be divided into distinct eras, reflecting technological advancements, market trends, and shifts in focus.

1. NFT Standard Introduction (2020–Early 2021)

• Context: NEAR introduced its NFT standard, based on the NEP-171 and NEP-177 standards, enabling the creation and management of non-fungible tokens. These standards provided a metadata, ownership, and interoperability framework, making NEAR a viable alternative to Ethereum’s high-gas-fee environment.
• Key Developments:
  • NEAR’s sharding technology (Nightshade) and PoS consensus allowed for scalable, low-cost NFT minting, with 10,000–100,000x lower transaction fees than Ethereum’s.
  • Early projects focused on simplifying NFT creation for non-technical users, leveraging NEAR’s human-readable account addresses (e.g., alice.near).
• Notable Projects:
  • Mintbase: Launched in 2018 by Nate Geier and Carolin Wend, Mintbase transitioned from Ethereum to NEAR in 2020 due to high gas fees. It became the “Shopify for NFTs,” allowing users to create digital storefronts for art, music, tickets, and more.
  • Createbase: An early platform exploring NFT creation, though less prominent than Mintbase.

2. Mintbase and Createbase Era (2021)

• Context: 2021 marked the “Year of the NFT” globally, with sales surging to $17.7 billion. NEAR capitalized on this by enhancing its NFT infrastructure.
• Key Developments:
  • Mintbase’s platform gained traction for its ease of use, enabling anyone to mint NFTs without coding skills. It introduced split revenue, allowing creators to share profits with collaborators (e.g., 5% to a DJ, 2% to an artist).
  • Partnerships with events like Wilde Möhre in Berlin showcased NFT ticketing use cases, connecting digital assets to physical experiences.
  • Createbase experimented with generative NFT tools, laying the groundwork for later platforms.
• Notable Projects:
  • Mintbase: Collaborated with artists like deadmau5 and Portugal. The Man will release NFT-based music, with 1 million NFTs sold exclusively on its platform.
  • Paras: Launched in February 2021, Paras focused on digital trading cards inspired by physical collectibles like Pokémon cards. It required artists to apply, approving only 30 per week, ensuring curated content.

3. Tenk and Generative NFT Collections (Late 2021–Early 2022)

• Context: The NFT boom, driven by projects like Bored Ape Yacht Club, inspired generative NFT collections on NEAR. Platforms like Tenk enabled mass-produced, algorithmically generated NFTs.
• Key Developments:
  • Tenk: A generative NFT infrastructure platform that allowed creators to launch collections with randomized traits, similar to Ethereum’s CryptoPunks. It became a backbone for several NEAR NFT projects.
  • Hype from Solana’s NFT market spilled over to NEAR, with collectors and investors seeking low-cost alternatives.
  • Paras became the primary marketplace for trading these collections, leveraging NEAR’s Rainbow Bridge for Ethereum-NEAR interoperability.
• Notable Collections:
  • NEAR Tinker Union: A community-driven NFT project with utility-focused tokens. Launched Enleap and then Meteorwallet
  • The Dons is a generative Acova collection featuring unique characters and lore.
  • Neko NFTs: Cat-themed NFTs that gained popularity for their aesthetic appeal. They launched the Neko Creators program, and Jump DeFi is now working on AI.
  • Shitzu: original meme coin on Aurora, now built NEAR’s canonical launchpad and omnibridge front end.
  • Mara Collections: Art-focused NFTs with cultural themes.
  • Exxaverse: A game-building project using NFTs as in-game assets, blending GameFi and collectibles.
• Investor Sentiment: Investors like NEAR Big Brain (a pseudonymous group) were bullish, comparing NEAR’s potential to Solana’s NFT ecosystem.

4. Paras Collection Era (2022)