Google searches for 'NFT' hit an all-time high as the user count on digital-collectible platforms beat 450,000 last week, research shows

• Interest in digital-collectibles trading remains in the spotlight, as "NFT" searches blew up this month.
• Search volumes hit an all-time high in March, while the user count on NFT platforms crossed 450,000.
• "The NFT bubble will eventually pop, but the broader impact it'll make will remain," one CEO said.

Google searches for "NFT," or non-fungible token, hit an all-time high this month as the number of weekly users on digital-collectible platforms exceeded 450,000 last week, according to data from The Block.

NFTs can somewhat be equated with a certificate of authenticity. In the real world, classic art, valuable artifacts, or antiques are often auctioned with receipts that indicate the object's authenticity. NFTs do the same thing for digital "goods," especially for GIFs, JPEGs, MP3s, or other forms of digital art.

Search volume indicates the average number of times a keyword was looked up over the past twelve months. It is represented by relative figures between o t0 100. For the week starting March 14, Google search volume for "NFT" hit the maximum value of 100 for a defined period, data showed. The average volume has exploded from a value of only 5 at the end of January to 55 by the end of February.

The data collected on the number of weekly users on NFT platforms also reflects the popularity of the NFT craze. User count shot past 450,000 for the week starting March 14. NBA Top Shot, an online forum for trading virtual basketball cards, counted at least 433,000 users of that figure.

The record-setting $69 million sale of a work by digital artist Beeple is only one of many examples of the ongoing hype. People have already spent over $1 billion on digital assets in the past month, data from CryptoSlam shows.

"Yes, the NFT bubble will eventually pop, but the broader impact it'll make will remain," Vytautas Zabulis, CEO of digital asset infrastructure firm H-Finance, said. "Just like any new technology, which is changing the way we live right now or in the future-similarly what we've seen with other digital assets like Bitcoin-as the initial hype evaporates, the prices level out and wider adoption begins, though the process can be lengthy."