Blur, the Ethereum-based NFT marketplace that once led the sector by trading volume, will discontinue its public website on November 12, 2026. The on-chain marketplace protocol will continue to operate, and the BLUR token will retain control of the protocol’s fee switch. The same date will also end new loan matching on Blend, the platform’s peer-to-peer NFT lending service.

Borrowers with outstanding Blend positions must repay their loans by the deadline or allow them to default. After November 12 the team plans to offer a dedicated tool for withdrawing assets from Blend. The announcement, posted on X by the official account, marked the project’s first public update on the platform in more than a year and warned users to disregard impersonators.

Sharp Decline in Trading Activity

Monthly trading volume on Blur peaked near $1.43 billion in March 2023, when the platform captured more than 70% of Ethereum NFT activity. By March 2026 that figure had fallen below $7 million, a contraction of more than 99%. The marketplace charged zero fees throughout its history and recorded no protocol revenue from trading over the past three years according to available data.

Blur launched in 2022 and gained rapid traction by offering professional trading tools, collection-wide bids and token incentives. The approach shifted market share away from OpenSea but also intensified debates over creator royalties. Effective royalty rates across major collections declined from an average of 2.5% in 2022 to 0.6% by July 2023, with analytics firms attributing a substantial portion of the change to Blur’s optional-royalty model and competitive pressure on rivals.

Token Reaction and Market Context

The BLUR token fell between 20% and 33% in the 24 hours after the announcement, trading as low as approximately $0.0127 and later near $0.013–$0.015. Market capitalization stood in the mid-$30 million range. Twenty-four-hour trading volume in the token exceeded $40 million during the sell-off.

The decision arrives less than two weeks after Blast, an Ethereum layer-2 network built by the same team under founder Tieshun “Pacman” Roquerre, announced its own wind-down. Blast users face an October 26 withdrawal deadline. Blur has not publicly linked its frontend closure to operating losses in the same way Blast did.

Across the wider NFT sector, September 2026 sales totaled $167 million over 2.9 million transactions, far below the January 2022 peak of $6 billion. Other platforms have already reduced or ended operations in recent months.

Collector Response

Some NFT collectors publicly welcomed the move, citing the platform’s earlier impact on royalties and trading incentives.

Users who interact directly with smart contracts may still access the on-chain marketplace after the website closes. For the majority of participants the November 12 deadline ends the primary web interface and new lending activity. Blur has not announced a replacement frontend or further details on long-term protocol development.