Kraken exchange launches waitlist for NFT marketplace

Kraken, a leading cryptocurrency exchange, has announced plans to launch a waitlist for its beta marketplace for non-fungible tokens (NFTs). The release of this waitlist has come over four months since the exchange’s CEO, Jesse Powell, announced that the exchange was moving towards the buzzing NFT sector.

Kraken opens NFT marketplace waitlist

On Tuesday, Kraken released a blog post revealing that it had launched a waitlist for its NFT marketplace. The marketplace will allow users to buy and sell NFTs, and it will be competing with market heavyweights such as OpenSea, which is currently the largest NFT marketplace by trading volumes.

During the announcement regarding these NFTs, Kraken had said that the NFTs would be used as collateral to acquire loans. This will be an advantage of this marketplace over the existing ones because it will allow NFT holders to participate in the buzzing decentralized finance (DeFi).

The exchange added that users would not be charged any gas fees for trading the NFTs in Kraken’s custody. Gas fees will only be charged while transferring token ownership and NFTs on the exchange.

Moreover, the Kraken NFT marketplace will prioritize the “rarity score.” It will focus on the features and traits that make NFTs unique. The creators of these NFTs will also receive rewards using a portion of every secondary market sale price for these digital assets.

A spokesperso0n from the exchange has also said that one of the key elements of this marketplace would be security. By boosting security, the platform will allow users to have “peace of mind and assurance.” The exchange has also said that it plans to focus on a “high quality offering” for these NFTs. It will vet the collections that have been listed and ensure there is enough liquidity that will moderate prices.

Crypto exchanges move towards NFT

Cryptocurrency exchanges usually derive their income from trading fees. However, over-reliance on these trading fees when the market is down can affect the earning potential of an exchange. Therefore, exchanges have been looking into diversifying their revenue streams, and NFTs are one of these areas.

Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the US, released the Coinbase NFT marketplace for beta testing last month. The exchange said that the NFT marketplace would focus on social engagement. Coinbase released the waitlist for this NFT marketplace in 2021, and it saw over 8.4 million email addresses sign up for the waitlist.

FTX, another leading exchange, has already ventured into NFTs. In September last year, FTX announced the launch of an NFT marketplace. The marketplace aims to allow users to trade different types of NFTs across different blockchains, such as Solana and Ethereum. Binance, the largest cryptocurrency exchange globally by trading volumes, launched its NFT marketplace in June last year. The marketplace has also seen increased adoption.

Despite these attempts, native NFT marketplaces such as OpenSea and Rarible have remained the largest ones in the market. However, exchanges are focusing on unique features to change this.