OpenSea’s strategic pivot comes as NFT volumes have declined in five straight quarters.

OpenSea’s strategic pivot comes as NFT volumes have declined in five straight quarters.

Crypto trading platform OpenSea is expanding beyond non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as the space faces a consistent decline in digital collectible trading volumes amid increasing competition.

On July 8, OpenSea announced that it hadacquired the mobile-focused token trading platform Rallyto push its expansion into mobile devices and enhance its token trading capabilities. The platform said it will build an “onchain everything app” to provide users with a new experience.

Rally co-founder Chris Maddern, who now works as OpenSea’s chief technology officer, told Cointelegraph that the move will bring together “the best of crypto,” putting everything in one place.

“Consumers are ready to do more with their crypto. They’ll come onchain to access the broad array of opportunities, assets and cultural experiences available there,” Maddern told Cointelegraph.

OpenSea exec outlines new vision for platform

Maddern told Cointelegraph that the vision for the new mobile-focused NFT platform is a place where crypto community members can find everything they need; the app will bring NFTs, tokens and decentralized finance (DeFi) in one application.

“In short, when you think about doing more with your crypto than just hodling it, you’ll open the OpenSea app,” he told Cointelegraph.

When asked about Rally’s role, Maddern said it will provide the foundation for the new OpenSea mobile experience. He said the team, with years of expertise in cross-assets and multi-wallet portfolios, would greatly contribute to OpenSea's new app.

“Combining Rally’s mobile token-trading capabilities with OpenSea’s deep expertise and product advantage in NFTs will enable us to foster a truly multi-asset ecosystem where tokens and NFTs will thrive together,” Maddern told Cointelegraph.

He added that the forthcoming app will also have artificial intelligence integrations.

When asked how the app will use AI, he said it will include helping users with safety and allowing users to better discover what they want to do within the app. He added that it will also be used for educational purposes, in helping people learn.

OpenSea’s pivot comes amid higher competition and lower NFT volumes

Even though OpenSea remains the number one NFT marketplace in the space, it has long lost its monopoly on digital collectibles. Data tracker NFTScanshows that its competitors have been inching closer.

In the past year, OpenSea’s market share was 37.93%. Its closest competitor, Blur, is right on its tail at 34.22%. The rise of competitors like Magic Eden, OKX NFT and Rarible has also saturated the NFT market, with more players sharing in the revenue as the trading volumes continue to decline.

OpenSea’s shift into tokens, DeFi and a focus on reaching mobile users comes as NFT trading volumes have declined in the last five quarters.

On July 3, decentralized application (DApp) data tracker DappRadar reported that the NFT space showed aconsistent drop in trading volumessince the second quarter of 2024.

In the second quarter of 2025, trading volumes were $823 million, down 385% compared to the $4 billion recorded in the second quarter of 2024.

OKX chief commercial officer Lennix Lai told Cointelegraph that the decline signifies the sector’s maturity. He said that the focus is shifting from hype-driven sales to utility-based and community-driven transactions.

While volumes declined in Q1 2025, the sales count increased. Lai told Cointelegraph that buyers were still eager to engage with NFTs even when the value of transactions had decreased.

“I maintain that NFTs are more than a digital collectible,” Lai told Cointelegraph. “The market may be quieter in terms of high-value trades, but it is becoming more active, inclusive and utility-focused.”