Non-fungible tokens are trading for millions of US dollars and have become a new trend. News on multi-million dollar sales has increased interest in these types of assets.
Over the last month, the price of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) has skyrocketed. Many people, like Mike Winkelmann, view them as a way to acquire and trade digital art in the future.
NFTs are increasingly close to the public and have become a revolution. They are a phenomenon that people may not feel right away, but they will soon.
The Christie platform auctioned the artwork entitled “Everydays: The First 5000 Days” by artist Mike Winkelmann (“Beeple”) for USD 69.3 million. It is public knowledge that Justin Sun, founder of Tron, was the bidder that lost at the last minute.
“I participated in the auction. However, another buyer outbid my offer in the last 20 seconds,” said the executive.
What Exactly Is an NFT
In the digital world, non-fungible tokens are an “inimitable” asset that people can buy and sell like any property. As they do not have a tangible form, it is possible to understand them as certificates of ownership of virtual or physical assets.
In that sense, Beeple comments that “you can turn anything digital into an NFT.” He adds that “now there is a [new] way to collect digital art.”
What is the Expert Opinion
Chakradhar Kommera, CTO at RubiX, believes that “NFT activity is increasing right now. In 2020, it was [already] worth more than USD 250 million. This year’s trading volume will be much higher.”
Similarly, Messari analyst Mason Nystrom stated that “some crypto natives are spending money on non-fungible tokens.”
Alex Gedevani, an analyst at Delphi Digital, said that “there are reasons to distrust them. A great supply [of NFTs] are entering the market.”
According to Craig Russo, co-founder of Polyient Games, “NFTs are highly illiquid by their non-fungible nature. Besides, they currently rely on auction-based sales systems to discover prices.”
Reasons for Trading NFTs
Anyone can tokenize their work to sell it as an NFT. However, interest in these types of assets has grown as a result of news on multi-million dollar sales.
Apart from the auction of artwork by “Beeple” for USD 69 million, there are many other cases. Among them are the NTFs of the covers of Time Magazine, and Jack Dorsey’s first tweet.
A few weeks ago, an NFT of digital artwork by humanoid robot Sophia was up for auction. The highest bidder paid the amount of USD 688,888 for it.
Justin Sun bought the piece “Ocean Front”, which was also up for auction, for USD 6 million. The Tron founder said that he now is “the owner of an artwork by the most sought after NFT artist of our time.”
To conclude, the acceptance and trade of blockchain and cryptocurrencies have enabled the NFT mania. However, this is just part of the latest phase of the digital revolution.
By Alexander Salazar
