What is an NFT? What are the 5 most expensive NFTs ever sold?
What is an NFT? What does NFT stand for?
NFT or Non-Fungible Token is a digital asset representing real-world objects like art, music, in-game items, and videos. They are bought and sold online frequently with cryptocurrency and are generally encoded with the same underlying software as many cryptos.
What can you do with an NFT?
NFTs allow people to prove ownership of digital assets. Owners can also program royalties for themselves into the metadata before selling on, to receive a percentage of future sales.
NFTs can be used for Any digital content, such as art, videos, gaming items, Gifs, and more. The Metaverse has a wide meaning and creativity in combination with NFTs can solve real problems in modern web3 life.
How do NFTs work?
Most NFTs are created and stored on the Ethereum network. NFT ownership can be traced and verified while the owner of the token can continue to remain pseudonymous.
An NFT is created from a smart contract that manages the ownership and transferability of the token. Each NFT can only have one owner at a time and is minted through smart contracts that conform to different standards, such as ERC-721. The minting process has the following steps: Creating a new block, validating information, and recording information into the blockchain.
What gives NFTs value?
An NFT’s value is defined by market supply and demand. It’s usually easier to evaluate an NFT when it’s created as a representation of a physical asset. But most NFTs only exist on-chain, in the digital world.
We use the term NFT for any digital asset registered on the Ethereum blockchain that is not a basic token. A non-fungible token (NFT) can represent anything from virtual land to works of art, collectibles, and more. Each NFT collection has a different supply, and each NFT unit can have a different rarity. But there are several other factors that can determine how much an NFT is worth. For example, limited series NFTs with specific use cases tend to be more valuable. The founding team, along with the artists and community, can also affect the demand for NFTs.
NFTs can derive their value in a variety of ways. For example, the value of an NFT could be related to who created it, its value in play-to-earn games, or simply community and market sentiment. There are many cases of successful NFT projects, but there are even more that have failed. Make sure to DYOR before trading or investing in NFTs and don’t use the money you can’t afford to lose.
What are the most expensive NFTs ever sold?
- Everydays: The First 5000 Days — $69.3 million Everydays: The First 5000 Days is a digital artwork by American graphic designer Mike Winkelmann, better known as Beeple. This NFT was sold for $69.3 million in February 2021, purchased by NFT investor Metakovan through an auction sale at Christie’s.
Clock — $52.7 million Clock depicts a dynamic timer that counts the number of days Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, has spent in prison. Assange is involved in a highly controversial case. He’s facing extradition from Britain to the US for multiple espionage charges and up to 175 years behind bars.
The NFT was curated by the digital artist Pak and Assange himself to raise funds for their legal defense. It was auctioned for 16,953 ETH in February 2022 to AssangeDAO, a decentralized organization (DAO) established to crowdfund the NFT sale.
HUMAN ONE — $28.9 million Another record-smashing NFT by Beeple, HUMAN ONE is the first physical artwork he creates. It was auctioned at Christie’s for $28.9 million in November 2021.
HUMAN ONE is an impressive three-dimensional moving sculpture with four high-resolution digital screens. This unique work displays an endless video of an astronaut journeying through places at different times of the day. The hybrid artwork reflects Beeple’s artistic ambitions beyond the digital realm.
- CryptoPunk #5822 — $23.7 million As one of the first famous NFT projects, these pixelated CryptoPunks continue to make the list of the most expensive NFTs ever sold. CryptoPunk #5822 was sold for 8,000 ETH in February 2022 to the CEO of a blockchain technology startup. It comes from the rarest alien edition — there’re only 9 of them in the entire NFT collection. What makes it extra special is that it’s also one of the 333 with a bandana.
CryptoPunk #7523 — $11.75 million The next most valuable NFT comes from the CryptoPunk family as well. Before the #5822 sale, #7523 was the most expensive CryptoPunk ever sold.
CryptoPunk #7523 is a unique, one-of-a-kind piece that was auctioned at Sotheby’s for $11.75 million during the COVID pandemic in June 2021. The unique edition is a mask-wearing alien, which is what made this CryptoPunk extra special to the buyer who purchased it.
Where can I buy NFTs?
You can get your first NFT at various NFT marketplaces. Depending on the blockchain network, you’ll need a compatible wallet and the supported cryptocurrencies for the purchase. For example, NFT prices on BNB Smart Chain (BSC) are almost always in BNB or BUSD, while NFTs on the Ethereum blockchain typically use ether (ETH).
You can buy the cryptocurrencies needed and transfer them to a wallet that can be connected to the NFT Marketplace.
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