If at the start of 2021, only a few cryptocurrency enthusiasts knew about the existence of non-fungible tokens (NFT), their progress is now dazzling. In one year, these are nearly $ 41 billion that has been spent on NFT making this market almost as lucrative as that of art.
The gradual rise of NFTs during the year 2021
NFTs are cryptographic tokens to which a digital ownership certificate is attached on a blockchain. The Ethereum blockchain did not hesitate to use this very specific token, which made it possible to see the price of Ether rise.
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In March 2021, NFTs began to be known to the general public. Jack Dorsey, co-founder of Twitter, sold his first tweet for $ 2.9 million. A collage made by Beeple sold for $ 69.3 million at Christie, a famous auction house. Gradually, several organizations became interested in non-fungible tokens.
The NBA has created its own NFT marketplace called NBA Top Shot for the purchase, sale and exchange of videos of its players. The Nike clothing brand has bought RTFKT, a start-up specializing in NFTs, not wanting to miss this trend. The sports equipment manufacturer could offer its own virtual products for sale on Nikeland, a virtual world. In the world of video games, Square Enix, Electronics Arts and Ubisoft have invested in NFTs.
Buyers are also interested in the relics of the internet and telecommunications. In addition to Jack Dorsey, at the end of 2021, the first SMS in history was sold in the form of an NFT for 107,000 euros at auction. In June the creator of the Web auctioned off his source code in the form of an NFT.
A booming market under the yoke of regulation?
40.9 billion dollars were paid into the ethereum blockchain contracts, used for the creation of NFT in 2021. A total that would undoubtedly have been higher if other blockchains like Solana had been taken into account . With the rise of NFTs, a large number of individuals have not hesitated to invest in cryptocurrencies. Small transactions under $ 10,000 represent over 75% of the market.
However, the NFT market is focused on 32,400 owners or portfolios who hold 80% of the market value. In total, 360,000 NFT owners hold nearly 2.7 million NFTs.
With the increase in popularity of non-fungible tokens, a new challenge emerges: that of security and regulation. Since all transactions take place on the internet using pseudonyms, it is very difficult to obtain the real identity of buyers and sellers. In addition, it is quite possible to manipulate the market. An NFT owner can buy it before subsequently reselling it on a platform to simulate an interest in the work and drive up prices.
The future of the NFT will undoubtedly depend on the position taken by the regulatory authorities in order to ensure the security of this market.