Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) made their debut in 2017, with the likes of Cryptopunks and Cryptokitties quickly grabbing buyer attention.

Since then, the NFT market has exploded, with Ethereum being one of the main contributing factors.

But why was Ethereum at the forefront of the NFT boom? And why are most NFT projects based on the Ethereum blockchain? Is it the only way to go about making an NFT?

Not really. Other blockchains such as Solana, Cardano, and BNB Chain also host NFTs.

Moreover, NFTs need not be purchased using Ether only — you can also buy, sell and trade digital assets using SOL, ADA, BNB, and other tokens.

Ethereum was one of the only blockchains that could support these digital assets.

Sensing the massive, several Ethereum-based NFT marketplaces, including Rarible, OpenSea and Nifty Gateway, began cropping up, and customers started flooding in.

Hence, while Ethereum is not a prerequisite to minting and trading digital tokens, it is undoubtedly a leader. It also has an extensive network of buyers, thanks to its exposure over the years.

Ethereum was the first smart-contract-enabled network. Smart contracts made it much easier to provide ownership and govern the transferability of NFTs.

Moreover, Ethereum also created a token standard called ERC-721 especially for the minting of NFTs. Ethereum laid the foundation for NFTs and paved the way for the digital asset revolution.