New currencies and modes of trading within the realm of fine art photography, brings with it new opportunities for the economy as well as artists and collectors. Currencies in virtual spaces takes on totally new meaning– meanings that can sometimes be confusing to understand conceptually, and to navigate. It is first important to decipher key questions related to money in the metaverse, before then understanding what this means for the future of buying and trading fine art:
How is Monetary Value Ascribed to NFTs?
Cryptocurrency is used for buying, selling, and trading in the NFT marketplace, but unlike physical currency, they don’t have a specific value. Their value is attached to a digital asset held on a secure and protected blockchain. When someone makes a purchase on an artwork NFT on the marketplace, the NFT acts as a token of ownership on a blockchain. Therefore, the value is ascribed to not only the artwork itself, but the qualities of the NFT that enable the artwork having traceable provenance and proof of intellectual property. NFTs are not in themselves “money” but are products that increase in value and investment that can be bought, sold and traded, with crypto currency.
How do You Purchase an NFT?
To purchase an NFT, users use their crypto currency in their crypto wallet. For Collectors on Uncontaminated, anyone can purchase an NFT, so long as they have cryptocurrency.
Do I Need a Wallet for Cryptocurrency? & Is it Secure?
You will need a wallet to store the cryptocurrency you will use to make NFT purchases, as well as the NFT itself. You cannot access your cryptocurrency without your private keys and an interface that accesses a blockchain. Despite the possibility for scams and fraud, as within any realm of financial assets, NFTs are fairly secure.
So, What Exactly is a Crypto Wallet?
A crypto wallet is a software or hardware that enables users to store and use cryptocurrency. With cryptocurrency, there is no tangible currency, no paper money to place within a physical wallet or purse. The crypto wallet stores all of your assets, securely through the blockchain, so that you can purchase things like NFTs– however the wallet themselves are not “stored” in one place, but are sequences of data saved within a database. In instances of accessing your wallet,your wallet finds the data associated with your public address and sums up the amount for you in the app’s interface.
Sending and receiving cryptocurrency is very easy. Users are able to send or receive cryptocurrency from their wallet using various methods that are accessible and navigable. Modern cryptocurrency wallets make the blockchain accessible to everyone.
So What Does Money in the Metaverse Mean for the Future of Buying and Trading Fine Art Photography?
Without the clunkiness and risks of trading with physical money, money in the metaverse offers a wide range of opportunity for the collector.
The top 4 benefits are as follows:
Benefits of a self governing and self managed currency
Cost Effective mode of transaction
Secure and private, thanks to blockchain technology
Easy to transfer funds
These benefits allow for secure and easy transactions for the collector, that are easily traceable, private and self governed, through the blockchain.
Collectors are able to use a new kind of currency that functions with the language of the future– namely, the language of speed, technological advancements, cyber-security and increasing focus on digitalization of not just the artworks themselves but so too the currency used to buy and sell works. Money in the Metaverse paves the road for the future of trade.
