The Latest Ethereum NFT Craze? Four-Digit Numbers

Four-digit Ethereum Name Service domains have become hot property. The realization that there are only 10,000 four-digit combinations has driven prices into the thousands of dollars. 

The ENS NFT Number Rush

A new craze is sweeping the NFT space. 

Over the past week, sales of four-digit Ethereum Name Service domains have skyrocketed as collectors rush to own one of only 10,000 possible combinations. Their relative scarcity, combined with the desire to own numbers matching examples from 10,000 NFT collections, caused all possible four-digit combinations to mint out quickly as the narrative took hold. Now, the floor price for four-digit ENS domains sits at approximately 0.5 ETH, or around $1,450 based on current market prices. 

Ethereum Name Service lets anyone with a Web3 wallet and some ETH mint NFTs representing a unique domain. ENS domains can be used as a read-friendly substitute for the unwieldy addresses assigned to Ethereum wallets. Like domain names on the Internet, rare or desirable ENS domains like crypto.eth or defi.eth can command incredibly high prices.

The current number mania has resulted in ENS domain sales hitting their highest levels on record. Per data from Scarce.guide, sales of ENS names hit 1,785 on Apr. 27. Before the four-digit domain hype, ENS sales rarely exceeded 100 per day over the past 14 months. Additionally, statistics on the NFT marketplace OpenSea show that ENS domain trading has increased more than 2,000% over the past week.

Like many NFTs, a community has quickly formed around four-digit ENS names. A self-proclaimed “NFT degen” who goes by @danielgothits on Twitter set up a 10kClub Twitter account and Discord server for all four-digit ENS holders. The 10kClub describes itself as “A web3 social club for ENS holders 0-9999. No roadmap. Just the first 10k numbers on the ethereum blockchain.”

Unfortunately, scammers are never far behind whenever new trends emerge in the NFT space. In response to the soaring value of four-digit ENS domain names, unscrupulous individuals have started minting ENS domains where the number “1” is substituted for the letter “l,” tricking collectors into paying the market rate for less valuable ENS domains.  

While the narrative surrounding four-digit ENS domains has undoubtedly made an impact with NFT collectors, not everyone is convinced. “I don’t know who needs to hear this but you do not need to buy any number ENS names… the 4 digits selling for multiple ETH will not age well imo,” tweeted NFT collector and content creator Jennifer Sutto. CryptoBatz Community Manager DannyPhantom also expressed skepticism about the four-digit fad, warning his followers not to jump into the trend just because it’s hot right now. 

But for now, it appears the numerical ENS domains trend is still going strong. The floor price for four-digit ENS’ continues to trend higher, and the even more coveted three-digit names, of which there are only 999, regularly fetch north of 5 ETH. However, whether the ENS number craze can solidify its spot in the NFT space remains to be seen.

Disclosure: At the time of writing this piece, the author owned ETH and several other cryptocurrencies.