Investment options multiply every day. Virtual assets joined common assets in real estate, precious metals and stocks. In fact, cryptocurrency doesn’t surprise anyone anymore. So, unique tokens enter the game. Yes, this is an investment innovation. As the last case shows, tokens allow you to earn up to 1 000% in a month.
First, let’s puzzle out the terminology. NFT is a non-fungible token. Any cryptocurrency is a token; however, Bitcoin is a fungible token because one Bitcoin can be replaced with another one of equal value. It is like one $100 note can be replaced with another one.
But non-fungible tokens are unique. For example, you can tokenize a ticket for an event, indicating the date, time, and place, or an airplane ticket with personal data. There is no other token the same; thus, it becomes non-fungible. Such tokens are created in a limited amount via the blockchain.
An interesting example of NFT is CryptoKitties. Every kitten has a unique genome. Owners can collect and breed kittens, creating new breeds with unique sets of genes. This is the creation of Dapper Labs, a mega-popular virtual game.
Besides kittens, there are Cheeze Wizards:
NBA Top Shot — The Blockchain Breakthrough
The NBA, the National Basketball Association, doesn’t need advertising. Top NBA players are treated as gods. That is why Dapper Labs decided to sell the highlights with the most favorite players. These are cards with the highlights; cards are divided into series and issued in limited quantities. The series and cards won’t be repeated. The first season of tokes is already over; the second season cards are coming soon.
There are 3 346 cards.
If you look at the stats, the price increased almost by 5 000% over the last month; 14 500 people participated in the sale, and the total amount is $30 million.
You can select popular clubs and top players:
Card prices are growing at an impressive rate. For instance, cards with highlights from games with LeBron James, currently the best NBA player, cost between $250 and $60 000.
Case Study: Investments into NBA Top Shot
Back in December 2020, investor and trader Vitaly began purchasing cards on the off chance, just buying what he liked. He bought a series of cards valued at $1. A month later, the price increased from 2 to 34 times. Of course, some positions remained the same. Out of 35-dollar cards, only a couple of positions remained the same, the price of two cards doubled, and the price of 12 cards increased from 6 to 9 times. The price of the remaining 19 cards increased from 10 to 34 times.
Seeing such progress, the investor consulted an NBA expert and learned which players and clubs are the most popular. Then, he purchased more expensive cards at higher rates, $14, $15, $17 and even $200.
Here we see a price hike. After all, having invested $1 001 in December 2020, by the end of January 2021 the investor had earned $10 026. And this is only the start. Vitaly set the sale prices for cards. Ideally, the venture will generate revenue of $90 145, that is $89 144 in profit.
How to Join?
Probably, it is not too late to enter this niche now. The second series of cards is being launched. Surely, the cards with top players are expensive. If you have a limited budget, turn attention to promising basketball players. Let’s see the ranking of top NBA players. As of now, Bradley Beal has the highest ranking among promising basketball players. Let’s find his NBA Top Shot cards.
You can buy inexpensive tokens for $3 or get the rare cards for $7 800.
You can purchase NBA Top Shot tokens on the project website.
To buy cards, you go to the marketplace, select the item and pay. You can pay by a bank card or cryptocurrency.
You can put your cards for sale on the same platform.
Virtual Football
Actually, the idea of digital football games is even more interesting. In Sorare fantasy you can purchase digital player cards (crypto-cards): you need at least 5 cards to form a team. Cards are based on prototypes of world-known football players.
The platform allows selling and exchanging blockchains. The most interesting is to play tournaments, receive awards, and boost the price of your players. The platform has partnered with more than 100 clubs, including Juventus, PSG, Atletico, West Ham, Schalke, etc. Other clubs are joining too.
What Comes Next?
The NFT market is forging ahead. Dapper Labs is getting ready to release UFC tokens. Basketball is popular mainly in the USA, while fans of the Ultimate Fighting Championship reside all over the world. The odds are that a surge in prices is coming, so you need to catch a moment to buy tokens at the starting price. The UFC tokens might lead to a new stage of blockchain development. We can predict launching NFT in other spectacular championships.
It is difficult to predict how long this trend will exist and how card prices will change in the future. Maybe, collectors will hunt and offer hundreds of thousand dollars for the first editions, or the rush will slow down and the price of tokens will decline. But in the short run, this is a great chance for investors.
Gamers Are Joining the Trend
Definitely, the trend will affect gamers too. Canadian gaming studio Skymarch Entertainment is integrating NFTs as items into three flagship games. Tokens will be used in "Crystals of Fate", "The Galaxy of Lemuria", and "Zeal". Besides, games will participate in "Enjin Multiverse".
Here you can purchase artifacts and use them in several games.
Totally, there are around 30 projects in the Multiverse.
This is a fantastic prospect for both gamers and investors. Some items can be purchased now:
As of now, items that belong to you in games, in fact, are not yours. They belong to developers of the gaming platform. For example, weapons and cases in CS. You can sell them to other players but they will not be your property. In its turn, blockchain allows monetizing items and storing them as assets, regardless of the game.
To the Future
It turns out that NFTs are unique digital assets, or rare artifacts. We can even imagine future collectors who will show off their magnificent collection in tokens. And this future is closer than it seems.
Even today you can purchase an original NFT painting. Digital artist Beeple, or Mike Winkelmann, sells his art work this way. The painting depicting Donald Trump was sold for $66 666.6. A new collection is available; the starting price for lots is $969. By purchasing an artwork, you receive an enclosed plastic digital frame with a holographic QR code that reveals a name of the owner.
Virtual reality leaps ahead and allows us to create money literally out of thin air via investments into moments and events. The most important thing is to keep wits about one and learn to maneuver within this stream.
