NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, are having a big moment as the world watches as those who ride the early NFT wave make millions overnight. These digital artifacts are at the center of an exciting mash-up between pop culture, crypto enthusiasts, advocates of decentralization, collectors, and tech aficionados.
Ready to dive into the world of NFTs but not sure where to start? Use Benzinga’s list of the best NFT platforms to find your way around and find the right NFT marketplace for you.
Do you want to buy NFTs? First of all, you can buy Ethereum on eToro, Gemini or Coinbase.
What is an NFT?
NFT stands for non-fungible tokens, i.e. a unique digital asset that is managed on the blockchain and that you can buy, sell, trade and own.
When a good is non-fungible, it means that it is not interchangeable. For example, if you buy a Beeple Crap or 3LAU NFT, you can resell it for cryptocurrency, but it’s not directly interchangeable with other NFTs.
Any NFTs non-fungible in nature is what gives it its appeal. It’s a unique piece of data. And because NFTs exist on a blockchain, they enable peer-to-peer (P2P) transactions. This is a great advantage for creators who want to sell their digital goods directly to their fans and want to eliminate the middleman.
Blockchain enables NFTs to have some other advantages as well. Here are the basics:
- An NFT is a digital file with a unique identity.
- An NFT is created on a blockchain using certain token standards, most commonly Ethereum ERC-721.
- To create an NFT, you must upload your digital file to an NFT marketplace.
- Blockchain allows you to verify the authenticity of an NFT, which is a big part of its appeal.
It’s easy to create your own NFT once you understand the basics of NFTs. Common NFTs include digital art, music NFTs, in-game tokens, trading cards like basketball cards or Pokemon cards, and more.
The best NFT exchange
Much like a cryptocurrency exchange, an NFT exchange allows you to buy, sell, and trade NFTs. It also allows you to upload and tokenize your Bald digital asset as a blockchain-based token.
The world of NFTs is growing rapidly, with marketplaces popping up left and right to meet the demand for these digital artifacts. But some have stood out from the crowd and proven to be the best NFT exchange in their category.
Best for diversity: OpenSea
As the largest NFT marketplace currently operating, OpenSea is one of the most recognizable names in the NFT space. If you want the ability to browse all types of NFTs, from digital art to rare collectibles, this is the exchange for you. It’s easy to sign up and even easier to upload your NFT to auction, making it a popular choice for both manufacturers and buyers.
Like many other exchanges, OpenSea is based on Ethereum, and you need to buy ETH, its native coin, to fund your bids and trades, and to cover any fees incurred. This is usually a maximum of cents in euros.
OpenSea requires an active wallet and recommends MetaMask as the best option. This is an easy to use browser extension.
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Best for exclusive drops: Nifty Gateway
Have you set alerts when your favorite brand or artist brings out new products? Nifty Gateway, powered by Gemini crypto exchange, is the marketplace for you.
The digital articles on Nifty Gateway, also called nifties, appeal to the hypebeast in us all. With a stated goal of reaching 1 billion people who collect nifties, Nifty Gateway is sure to remain a major player in the NFTs space.
Nifty Gateway knows how to appeal to anyone obsessed with exclusive drops from iconic brands like Supreme. Check out the drop schedule or sign up for the exclusive drop list to keep an eye on releases from such sought-after creators as EDM musician Deadmau5 and artist Marius Sperlich.
Best social aspect: SuperRare
SuperRare is a digital art auction house and social network. SuperRare believes that collecting is at its core a social pastime.
And that approach makes sense. NFTs are speculative by nature, and people like you and I ultimately decide their value. It is difficult to determine a value without others vying for the same piece or knowing why other collectors are passionate about a piece.
If you’re an artist, SuperRare is currently still in its early adopter phase, with only a select few artists being added to the marketplace. But don’t sleep on SuperRare. Stay ready for the full launch in 2022.
The best for NBA fans: NBA Top Shot
The basketball trading card market has been hot again in recent years, and NBA Top Shot is the future of sports memorabilia and the digital answer to sports collectibles.
It enables its users to own the best moments in NBA history. On NBA Top Shot, sports lovers can bid and collect moments in 3 categories on Top Shop: Rookies, Vets and Rising Star Players. There is a wide range of edition sizes available for NBA Top Shot members.
At the top Genesis level, only 1 edition of a collector’s item is available. Common (lowest) tier memorabilia have 10,000+ editions available.
The NBA Top Shot Marketplace is easy to navigate. Look for categories like Latest Drop Moments or Moments from your favorite teams. You can search by tier, set, or player to find exactly the types of collectibles you’re looking for.
The best for football fans: Sorare
Sorare offers a platform for collecting and trading limited football NFT cards. More than 125 clubs are represented and more are added every week.
Connect with other fans and trade with them through Sorare’s open marketplace or take part in the Global Fantasy Football Game where you can create your line-up and earn points based on real-world performance. Every week you have a new chance to put your skills to the test and win prizes. You compete against other users and rise in the league.
How to set up an NFT stock exchange account
Setting up an NFT wallet account varies by platform, but here is a general step-by-step guide to follow.
Step 1: Open a wallet
If you already buy and trade crypto, you may already have a wallet. If not, you will need to open one to take advantage of the NFT exchanges.
A wallet is the place where you keep your digital money as well as your identification details and login information. It is essentially the portal that allows you to access and interact with the blockchain.
In addition to MetaMask, other popular wallets for NFTs include TrustWallet, Dapper, and MyEtherWallet (MEW), which works with hardware wallets like Ledger and Trezor.
Step 2: Open an account at the selected NFT exchange and make a deposit
This is the easy part. Visit the marketplace of your choice and follow the instructions to open an account. Most of them require little walking. With your wallet set up, you can start trading NFTs pretty quickly once your account is funded.
The vast majority of NFTs are Ethereum based, so you will need ETH tokens to purchase.
Step 3: bid on your NFT
Once you’ve set up your wallet and have enough ETH on your NFT wallet to buy, you’re good to go!
If you’ve ever bid on something on eBay or StockX, you know how it works. You can either bid on the primary offer of an NFT or wait to see what the market value is in the secondary market.
Don’t miss the NFT boot
Do you remember the early days of Bitcoin? Then you probably know that something new shouldn’t be condemned until you’ve tried it, especially new trends in currencies or assets.
And if you do it wisely and only invest what you can afford to lose, you have nothing to worry about. There is a marketplace for seemingly every type of digital artifact, and more are sure to come.
Don’t miss the boat. Get started as an early adopter by registering with one of the exchanges on our list.
frequently asked Questions
Q: What is a famous example of a non-fungible token?
A: Colored Coins are widely considered to be the first NFTs. These were small amounts of Bitcoin that were used to identify and represent digital assets.
But the first breakthrough NFT in its current iteration could be listed as the Force of Will. This was an NFT trading card game that ended up # 4 in sales in North America, only surpassed by super hits like Magic: The Gathering and Yu-Gi-Oh.
Q: What is the most expensive NFT ever sold?
A: The most expensive NFT ever sold was Beeple’s The First 5,000 Days. Beeple committed to releasing a new digital work every day starting in 2007, and this NFT represented the first 5,000 of this formidable feat.
This NFT sold for nearly $ 70 million at a Christie’s auction, making it the most expensive sale to date and ranking Beeple third among the most valuable artists in the world.
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Disclaimer: This article should not be construed as and is not intended to provide investment advice. The cryptocurrency newspaper and its affiliates, employees, writers, and subcontractors are cryptocurrency investors and from time to time may have interests in some of the coins or tokens they cover. Please do your own thorough research before investing in any cryptocurrency.
