Quick Take

• Sotheby’s launches its own Ethereum-based NFT marketplace called Sotheby’s Metaverse.

• Intel will not lock out miners amid release of its new graphics cards.

• Ethereum Name Service metadata update includes refreshed NFT images.

• Hop Protocol bridge now supports ETH between layer2 networks.

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Ethereum Price Jumps 8% In 24 Hours

The price of Ether has jumped 8% in the last 24 hours, hitting $3,800 for the first time since early September. There was no direct cause for the jump other than Ethereum’s steady progress toward the merge. The upcoming merge will replace Ethereum’s current proof-of-work algorithm with proof-of-stake.

Supply has also slowed since the implementation of EIP-1559, having already burned $2 billion worth of ETH. The percentage of ETH staked on Ethereum 2.0 has also risen to more than 5% of supply. Ethereum holds more than two-thirds of the total value locked in DeFi, with more than $3.5 billion locked on layer2 networks. Ethereum’s all time high of $4,350 was reached back in May.

Sotheby’s Launches NFT Marketplace

Sotheby’s, the world’s second largest auction house, has launched its own Ethereum-based NFT marketplace called Sotheby’s Metaverse. The platform will accept both fiat and Ethereum for purchases. The marketplace is powered by Mojito, a new NFT tech suite developed by crypto marketing firm Serotonin.

Serotonin has been working with Sotheby’s since the initial Pak auction back in April. The new marketplace will host Sotheby’s Natively Digital 1.2 auction, which features 53 NFT collectibles currently owned by 19 celebrities and notable collectors in the space. Natively Digital 1.2 is currently open for viewing and will open bidding from October 18th to the 26th.

Sotheby’s NFT marketplace comes amid the launch of FTX US’s own NFT marketplace and Coinbase revealing its plans to launch one later this year. Gary Vaynerchuk has also partnered with gallerist Vito Schnabel to launch Art Official, an NFT platform focused on fine art.

Intel Won’t Restrict Mining On Its Graphics Cards

Intel has revealed that its new line of graphics cards won't include software or hardware restrictions on cryptocurrency mining. The company will be releasing a new product line of Arc graphics cards, referred to as Alchemist, which are designed as gamer-first and creator-first products.

Roger Chandler, Intel’s VP and GM of Client Graphics Products, addressed rumours of software lockouts for miners. Intel will not be taking actions to lock out miners and the products will be available on the market for anyone to buy. Traditional PC gamers have been upended by crypto miners in recent years, causing a supply shortage and surge in price.

Nvidia has attempted to restrict crypto mining using its hardware in the past by introducing hash rate limiters. Earlier this year, Nvidia announced that its latest line of GeForce graphics cards would be less desirable for miners. The demand for mining hardware may ease once Ethereum switches to proof-of-stake.

ENS Metadata Update Supports NFT Images

Ethereum Name Service has released a metadata update to ENS names. The new release enables a wider range of data to be displayed and managed by owners. The update will primarily affect NFT images for .eth names.

Ownership of a .ETH name is represented in the form of an NFT. However, ENS never created a placeholder image for .ETH names. The current multi-colored placeholder images shown on OpenSea were actually created by OpenSea as a way to visually show ENS names. The images have also made their way across other applications that pull data from the OpenSea API.

ENS’s new release features an official default image for .ETH names, which are shown in blue and with the ENS logo. OpenSea has since switched to using the new images and is in the process of refreshing the metadata for all ENS names.

Users who have set an avatar for their ENS name will also have that NFT displayed in replacement of the default image. ENS also announced emoji support and plans to have the NFT display if a name points to a L2 network.

Hop Protocol Adds Support For Ethereum

And lastly, Hop Protocol, a bridge for layer2 assets, has added support for Ethereum. Users can now use Hop to bridge ETH between mainnet Ethereum, Polygon, xDAI, Arbitrum, and Optimism. Hop also supports DAI, USDC, Tether, and MATIC. Liquidity pools are now open for WETH and Hop’s native liquidity token hETH. Users can deposit either single-sided or both tokens in any ratio to the liquidity pool.