NFT Marketplace Collapse: Nifty Gateway, Foundation Lead Wave of Major Platform Shutdowns

TLDR: NFT trading volumes collapsed from $2.9 billion in 2021 to just $23.8 million by early 2025 quarterly data. Major platforms including Nifty Gateway, Foundation, and MakersPlace announced closures within days in January 2026. Centralized storage systems left 27% of top NFT collections vulnerable to permanent loss after server shutdowns. OpenSea recaptured 67% of Ethereum NFT volume by expanding into fungible tokens as competitors exited the market. The digital art marketplace landscape has undergone a dramatic transformation as prominent NFT platforms cease operations. Trading volumes collapsed from $2.9 billion in 2021 to $23.8 million by early 2025, representing a 93 percent decline. Gemini’s Nifty Gateway, Foundation, and multiple other platforms announced closures or ownership transfers within days of each other in January 2026, marking the effective end of the venture-backed NFT marketplace ecosystem. Wave of Platform Closures Reshapes Digital Art Infrastructure Nifty Gateway announced its shutdown on January 24, 2026, with approximately 650,000 NFTs requiring withdrawal before the April 23 deadline. Community outcry initially extended the original February 23 closure date. Three days later, Foundation’s creator transferred ownership to BlackDove, a digital art streaming company. The platform had generated $230 million in primary sales during its operational period. MakersPlace shut down in January 2025 after facilitating the landmark $69.3 million Beeple sale through Christie’s in 2021. Content manager Brady Evan Walker announced that “ongoing market challenges and funding difficulties have made it impossible to sustain operations while fulfilling our mission.” https://t.co/aOcUOsNwtV — medved (@mattmedved) February 3, 2026 KnownOrigin, acquired by eBay in 2022, wound down operations in July 2024. Async Art closed in October 2023 despite raising $2 million in seed funding. Active traders declined from 529,101 in 2022 to 19,575 by 2025, according to Dap...