By Wendy’s Whitepaper contributor @LibertyRaider
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Non-fungible tokens - The latest trend in crypto that’s got big brands like Nike, the NBA, and Louis Vuitton taking notice, and William Shatner tokenizing his memories on the WAX blockchain… uh… what? Yes - digital trading cards of his favorite memories.
You might have heard about Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey selling his first-ever tweet as an NFT for $2.9 million. These headlines grab attention and get people talking about the space. Which brings us to our first use case.
Collectibles
Collectibles are currently one of the most obvious applications for NFTs as everyone with a fanbase is jumping on the bandwagon. The NBA and NFL are looking at NFTs to create greater fan engagement. The “NBA Top Shots” card trading game has seen individual Top Shots sold for tens of thousands of dollars apiece.
NBA Top Shot is crushing it. Five months in and the blockchain-based collectible platform has already handled more than three million transactions and $460 million in sales. NFT sports collectibles are here to stay.
Time will tell how well all these NFT collectibles hold value. Just remember the market. When times are good, collectibles are rare. When times are tough, they tend to become more common.
Art
The intersection between the worlds of art and crypto is redefining the concept of ownership in the digital age for savvy artists and collectors. The NFT allows these works and the original underlying code to be sold as unique, even if copies of these works are spread all over the internet.
Purely digital work of art by Mike Winkelmann, known as Beeple, sold for a record-breaking $69.3 million at a Christie's online auction.
An NFT is assigned by a blockchain clearinghouse, and attached to the digital artwork permanently, marked as original, official, and unique. That NFT allows a buyer to own the original artwork, even if copies of it exist.
Music
NFTs in the music industry can take on many forms including ticket sales for concerts (virtual and physical), previews of unreleased songs, and more. For artists, NFTs offer the possibility of cutting out the industry’s middlemen and monetizing their work in new ways.
The rock group Kings of Leon recently dropped the first album ever as an NFT.
Gaming and virtual worlds
NFTs are already booming in the gaming industry. They allow in-game items to be tokenized and exchanged with peer-to-peer trading or in marketplaces. They make the gaming experience more rewarding as players have ownership of their digital assets. They are also creating an economy as players can earn money by developing in-game assets.
Watch this review of NFT WARS by @CryptoWendyO
Documentation
Identity and qualifications can also be stored anonymously as NFTs. Your keys, your docs – prove you are over 21 without handing over your ID and exposing your address or other information you don’t want to give out. Licenses, all sorts of credentials, and even health records can be stored this way, only giving out the data in which you grant access.
Real-world assets
Tokenized real-world assets like real estate can be used as collateral in DeFi. However, the use of NFTs goes beyond collaterals. We have the capability of representing more complex financial products. They can be insurances, bonds, or options. In insurance, each contract would be converted into an NFT, and these NFTs can then be traded on secondary markets.
NFTs are finding themselves at the digital and real-world intersection for many industries, and we’re just scratching the surface. Much, much more to come…
If you found this helpful, feel free to follow me on Twitter @LibertyRaider or toss a few shekels in the tip jar.
BTC: bc1qzq3res0wkltm6j05l33qvl0fe87sk86h2mafjy
ETH: 0xe663D93cab721ed5451B3d35d0386Dd09124cf57
BNB: 0x3036a2C5B8677848d08262D815783bc35C538ef0
Wendy’s Whitepaper Disclaimer: Please be advised that I own a diverse portfolio of cryptocurrency assets, and anything written or discussed in connection to cryptocurrencies– regardless of the subject matter’s content– may represent a potential conflict of interest. I wish to remain transparent and impartial to the cryptocurrency community at all times, and therefore, the content of my media are intended FOR GENERAL INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY. Nothing that I write or discuss should be construed, or relied upon, as an investment, financial, legal, regulatory, accounting, tax, or similar advice. Nothing should be interpreted as a solicitation to invest in any cryptocurrency, and nothing herein should be construed as a recommendation to engage in any investment strategy or transaction. Please be advised that is in your own best interests to consult with investment, legal, tax, or similar professionals regarding any specific situations and any prospective transaction decisions.