Even though four months have passed in 2026, wasn't the NFT story supposed to be over? Honestly, seeing how the industry has cooled down this much, many people might be doubting whether it will truly make a comeback.

But recently, some interesting movements have started to emerge. Within a few weeks from the beginning of the year, the total market capitalization of the NFT space reportedly increased by over $220 million. Hundreds of projects are recording price recoveries, with some even showing triple- to quadruple-digit growth rates. Compared to the cold situation at the end of 2025, investors who are seeing green numbers again must be feeling a slight sense of relief.

However, here’s the key point. This cannot be considered a full-scale recovery of the NFT market. Because new funds are not flowing in; rather, existing capital is just shifting around. Liquidity remains extremely low. Out of over 1,700 projects, only six projects have weekly trading volumes reaching $1 million. Only 14 projects have trading volumes in the tens of thousands of dollars. This is the reality.

Looking at the entire NFT market over the past year, the total transaction volume has fallen to $5.5 billion, a 37% decrease compared to 2024. The total market cap also plummeted from $9 billion to $2.4 billion. In other words, even if there are signs of recovery on the surface, the overall market is still in a serious state.

In this environment, players are showing efforts to survive. OpenSea is shifting from focusing solely on JPEG images to token trading businesses. Flow, once a major NFT blockchain, is exploring a transition into DeFi. Zora has abandoned the traditional NFT model and moved into new areas. The NFT Paris event, a symbol of the NFT scene, was canceled due to lack of funds.

Reddit has shut down its NFT services, and Nike has sold RTFKT. The scene of major Web2 companies withdrawing one after another has shattered the last illusion of mass adoption among the general public.

But interestingly, the funds haven't completely disappeared; they’ve moved to other battlegrounds. Physical figures and trading cards are now being traded more passionately than images on the blockchain. Pokémon TCG, for example, has trading volumes exceeding $1 billion.

And what’s notable here is that even crypto elites are returning to tangible assets. Beeple produced and sold out a physical robot dog immediately, and Wintermute’s co-founder bought a dinosaur fossil for $5 million. Animoca’s founder bought a Stradivarius violin for $9 million. Tron’s founder also purchased high-value art for $6.2 million.

At this point, the question of whether the NFT market will truly recover needs to be reconsidered from a different perspective. The current capital is flowing into things with clear value or practical utility, rather than chasing meaningless small images.

NFTs that function as proof of rights for token airdrops, those backed by celebrities or major projects, top IP NFTs like CryptoPunks that have become permanent collections at MoMA, projects with acquisition stories, and those registering real-world assets on the blockchain—these kinds of “meaningful NFTs” are beginning to attract concentrated investment.

NFTs with practical functions such as ticket sales, DAO voting rights, or on-chain identities for AI agents are also gaining attention. In short, whether NFTs will recover depends no longer just on price increases, but on how much practicality and value they can offer.