NFT’s in the Indian context entrepreneurial opportunities

Abstract

NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens) are tokens of ownership over information in any form through the creation of a unique, non-replicable digital signature using blockchain technology, NFTs are toted to be a great application of blockchain technology in empowering artists and creators in enforcing the rights of digital art and media with tokenized assets. Lately, a multitude of NFT and crypto-based businesses and marketplaces have emerged. Each of them caters to different segments/ a mix of multiple segments of the entire crypto value chain. Focusing on the NFTs, in recent years, NFTs have garnered tremendous attention from the industrial and scientific communities. As per reports, the 24-hour trading volume of NFTs is nearly 4.6 billion USD while that of the entire cryptocurrency market is 341 billion USD (in 2021). NFTs are holding a 1.3% of the total cryptocurrency market within a very short duration of gaining attention. The early investors have made thousand-fold returns over their digital collectibles. The sale of NFTs was expected to be around 12 million (as of December 2020) but it exploded to 340 million in just two months (February 2021). Such skyrocketing sales figures explain the craze NFTs have garnered in recent times. Many experts believe that NFTs are the future of digital assets. NFTs have found their application in the sectors of gaming, art, sports, collectibles, etc. NFTs enable democratic participation through blockchain-enabled decentralization of art’s production and distribution. Metaverse is currently expanding the frontiers of the digital universe. It promises to entail a full-fledged economy encompassing both physical and virtual worlds. NFTs will be in charge of enabling virtual assets with secure proof of ownership in the metaverse. In the past three years, NFTs as collectibles accounted for more than 50% of the total NFT sales while gaming and art, accounted for 15% each. Recently, global brands started using NFTs as marketing tools successfully to create brand presence and brand identity among the 4 target audiences. Brands like Coca-Cola, Taco Bell, Nike, Marriott, etc. have seen success through such initiatives.