At one time in history, we used different sized stones as a form of monetary exchange. Today, the new token of esteemed value is the NFT. NFT in long form is (non-fungible token). A bitcoin is a fungible. One bitcoin is always equal to another bitcoin however NFTs are different. Each NFT has a digital signature that makes it impossible for it to be exchanged for or equal to another NFT. A list would include digital art, drawings, music, videos, photographs, any sort of digital file.

Let’s understand the word ‘Blockchain’. A blockchain is a kind of database designed to store information electronically in digital format. It is used in the world of cryptocurrency, because as a storage system, the Blockchain provides and maintains a secure and decentralized record of transactions. The names of two cryptocurrencies are Bitcoin and Ethereum. The NFT is another kind of token with value. Other terms to know are: MetaMask Wallet and Ether (currency) which goes into the wallet. The places where we can shop (make transactions) are called the NFT Marketplaces. Remember, an NFT is a non-fungible token created on a blockchain and there are many different types of NFTs. All NFTs are unique.

Interested? I am. So where do I go to get the currencies and where are the markets and what can I buy? The exchange address I found is called: Coinbase. If I want to buy Art I can visit: SuperRare.com. If I want to browse a site of general items I can visit: Binance.com/en/nft/. Then I might want to go to an auction: Foundation.app/ and there I will find creators and their digital artworks. Feeling creative yourself? Go visit Rarible where you can produce and list your own NFTs.

It soon became clear that NFTs can be very expensive. I wanted to know why. Ownership history, buyer perception and future value are the reasons. In April 2021, an artist known as Mad Dog Jones was credited as the most expensive living artist in all of Canada when he sold his Replicator NFT for $4.1 million. The Replicator NFT can generate new NFTs every 28 days. The new NFTs belong to the buyer/owner to be kept or sold. In August 2021, an NFT titled CryptoPunk#2338 sold for $4.32 million. It was created in June 2017 and by the time it was sold, its’ value increased by almost 10,000 percent. CryptoPunk#5217 went for $5.45 million and in the beginning this NFT went for a bit more than $1800. After a ten minute search I found what I think is the most expensive NFT in the category of digital art. Titled the Merge by artist Pak, it is a collection of ‘masses’; the more people spent the larger their ‘mass’ became. The collection is considered one piece of work. It sold for $91.8 million.

Still interested? Not me. I wrote this just before supper. I am hungry and I know I am not the only one. Difference is I have food in the fridge and food in the cupboards. Not everyone does. When NFTs become inexpensive like baseball cards, or Pokeman or even commemorative coins and stamps, I might want to learn more about them. Some say it is a craze and it seems that way. But then I know only what I wrote in this blog. Enough to not leave the group when everyone is chatting and just enough to follow the conversation while patiently waiting for a change of topic.