The Current Meta
October 2019 is shaping up to be a pivotal month for the intersection of mobile technology and digital collectibles. With Bitcoin holding steady around $8,100 and Ethereum trading at $178, the crypto market is in a quiet but decisive accumulation phase — and beneath the surface, the infrastructure for a digital collectibles revolution is being quietly assembled.
Samsung Electronics, the world’s largest smartphone manufacturer, is making its most aggressive blockchain play yet. Following the initial launch of the Samsung Blockchain Keystore on the Galaxy S10 earlier in 2019, the company is now preparing to expand its built-in crypto wallet to a broader range of Galaxy devices. The implications for NFT adoption are enormous: when a device manufacturer with over 300 million annual smartphone shipments integrates blockchain functionality directly into its operating system, the friction between mainstream users and digital collectibles practically vanishes.
The timing is no coincidence. October 2019 has seen a flurry of activity in the NFT space that suggests the sector is transitioning from a niche curiosity to an emerging asset class. Ethereum, the blockchain that underpins the vast majority of non-fungible tokens, is processing increasing volumes of ERC-721 transactions as platforms like OpenSea, SuperRare, and KnownOrigin onboard new artists and collectors at an accelerating pace.
Volume & Floor Dynamics
The trading dynamics in the NFT market during mid-October 2019 tell a story of organic growth rather than speculative hype. Unlike the frothy ICO era of 2017, this expansion is being driven by genuine artistic creation and collector interest.
SuperRare, the curated digital art marketplace on Ethereum, is seeing individual artworks sell for 2 to 6 ETH — a range of roughly $356 to $1,068 at current prices. The platform’s model of single-edition digital artworks, each verified on-chain, is attracting a growing cohort of collectors who value provenance and scarcity. African digital artist Osinachi has sold out entire collections on SuperRare, with secondary market prices doubling and tripling within months.
OpenSea, which positions itself as the largest marketplace for crypto collectibles and non-fungible tokens, is broadening its support for ERC-721 and ERC-1155 assets. The platform is becoming the go-to destination for trading everything from virtual land parcels to gaming items to digital artwork. Monthly trading volumes, while modest by 2021 standards, are showing consistent upward trajectory.
The broader crypto market provides a supportive backdrop. Bitcoin’s market capitalization stands at approximately $145.8 billion, while Ethereum’s is $19.3 billion. XRP holds the third spot at $13 billion, and the total cryptocurrency market cap is holding above $220 billion. These stable macro conditions give NFT creators and collectors the confidence to build long-term.
Community Sentiment
The mood across NFT-focused Discord servers and Telegram groups is cautiously optimistic. Artists who have been creating digital work for years without a reliable monetization mechanism are finding that blockchain-based marketplaces offer something the traditional art world never could: direct access to a global collector base without gallery intermediaries.
Researcher and analyst Andrew Steinwold published a widely circulated blog post in October 2019 tracing the history of non-fungible tokens from the early Colored Coins experiments on Bitcoin through to the modern ERC-721 standard on Ethereum. The piece crystallized for many readers that NFTs were not a passing fad but an evolution years in the making. Steinwold’s framing helped legitimize the space for institutional and traditional art collectors who had previously dismissed digital collectibles as a novelty.
Meanwhile, the Samsung Developer Conference, scheduled for late October 2019 in San Jose, is generating significant buzz in the crypto community. Samsung’s plans to integrate blockchain gaming applications and crypto asset management directly into its devices signal that the tech giant views digital collectibles not as a fringe experiment but as a strategic product category. Blockchain Cuties Universe, a multi-chain NFT game, is among the first decentralized applications being prepared for the Samsung Blockchain Wallet — a move that could expose millions of casual mobile users to NFTs for the first time.
The Next Evolution
Several new platforms are emerging that push the boundaries of what NFTs can represent. Async Art, a new platform exploring “programmable art,” is asking a provocative question: what happens when digital artworks can evolve over time, react to their owners, or pull in real-world data? The concept of layered art — where individual components of a piece can be owned and modified independently — represents a fundamental departure from static collectibles.
Nifty Gateway, founded by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, is entering the space with an explicit mission to make NFTs accessible to mainstream audiences. The platform’s focus on user experience and fiat on-ramps addresses one of the biggest barriers to NFT adoption: the technical complexity of managing Ethereum wallets and gas fees.
Verisart, a blockchain certification platform for physical and digital art, closed a $3 million seed funding round in October 2019, demonstrating that venture capital is beginning to flow into the NFT infrastructure layer. This institutional interest validates the thesis that blockchain-based provenance and digital ownership are solving real problems in the art world.
Investor Takeaway
For those watching the NFT space from the sidelines, October 2019 offers a clear signal: the infrastructure phase is accelerating. Samsung’s hardware integration, new marketplace entrants like Rarible and Nifty Gateway, growing venture capital investment, and rising artist adoption all point to a market that is building the foundations for explosive growth.
Ethereum at $178 remains the primary gateway to the NFT ecosystem, and for investors with a long-term thesis on digital ownership, the current quiet period represents an accumulation opportunity. The artists and collectors building today are creating the cultural and technical infrastructure that will define the next decade of digital collectibles. As with every technological shift, the earliest participants — those willing to navigate the friction of nascent platforms and volatile crypto markets — stand to benefit the most.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Cryptocurrency markets are highly volatile, and NFT investments carry unique risks including liquidity constraints and regulatory uncertainty. Always conduct your own research before making investment decisions.
samsung integrating a keystore into the galaxy s10 was genuinely ahead of its time. most people didnt even know what an NFT was in october 2019
Mikael S. ahead of its time is generous. the keystore was buried in settings and samsung never marketed it. cool tech zero distribution strategy
300 million annual shipments with built-in crypto wallets and somehow adoption still took years. distribution isnt the bottleneck, ux is
galaxyhodler UX is exactly right. the keystore was 7 taps deep in settings and the wallet UI looked like it was built by engineers for engineers
eth at $178 and people were calling the nft space dead. those who aped into superRare and knownorigin prints around this time made generational returns
eth at 178 and people buying known origin prints. the september 2019 crowd was tiny but they understood what NFTs could become before anyone else
Elena Varga known origin prints at 0.1 ETH going for 5 ETH in 2021. the sep 2019 crowd was tiny but they had real conviction