Not convertible tokens (NFT) gained enormous popularity this year, and the press wrote about them, which contributed to the increase in their value.
Według nonfungible.com NFT sales by the end of October 2021 were more than $ 9,2 billion, up from $ 162 million at the beginning of this year.
This stunning increase of more than 5000% was driven by the highest share of sales - the number of products sold increased by 98% during that time, from 5,1 million to 10,1 million.
Our Team MoneyTransfers.com decided to investigate where in the world interest in the NFT market is the greatest and how it compares with the interest in cryptocurrencies.
But first, some basic information ...
What is NFT?
The word "inconvertible" simply means something that is unique and cannot be replaced (an example often cited is that the $ 10 banknote is redeemable while the Mona Lisa image is not).
"Token"But it refers to the line of code on blockchain - usually Ethereum - which determines who owns digital assets, similar to owning an individual kryptowalutysuch as Bitcoinwhich is also confirmed by a code on the blockchain.
A digital resource can be a graphic, video, song, meme - but what we see is still only the tip of the iceberg.
Depending on the resource, it can also be freely viewed online. This aspect can be compared to watching the Mona Lisa in an art gallery, but the token still confirms its title.
According to Khashayar Abbasi, associate Bankless Times and the founder of the Crypto With Kash analytical newsletter, their attractiveness is four times greater.
First, buying an NFT is very simple. Especially that today's NFT markets have very easy-to-use interfaces, ”he explained.
“They can be a very lucrative investment, as we have learned from companies such as Cryptopunks and Bored Apes. They build a sense of community - you can become part of an elite group of people who have a given NFT, and this aspect is extremely important for some investors. "
“And finally, they have become status indicators. Previously, rich people bought expensive watches to show off their wealth, but only those who actually met them could see that they had them on their wrists. Now you can buy NFT, post it on social media, and anyone around the world can verify it's 100% yours. I think this is just the beginning with the NFT use cases. "
Where are NFTs Popular?
Abbasi says that because the transactions are anonymous, it is difficult to pinpoint exactly where most of the NFT's sales are taking place. However, by looking at Google Trends, or by observing the moods in social media, you can have some idea about it.
MoneyTransfers.com used Google Trends data to check where the term "non-convertible token", which includes language / character variations and various search terms related to the topic, was most popular.
Google compares these searches worldwide on a scale of 1 to 100, with 100 being the most popular of all other searches on the platform.
Interestingly, China topped the list, where Google is technically blocked. Most searches came from Zhejiang Province on the East Coast, Shanghai City, and Hubei Province, now best known as Wuhan Headquarters.
The next four places in the top ten were taken by the countries of Asia and the Pacific, with great interest from Singapore, Hong Kong, South Korea and Australia.
Abbasi commented: "Asian countries are usually more used to cashless and digitized systems than Western ones, which may be why NFT use is so widespread there."
“The Chinese company Alibaba, one of the largest companies in the world, has also launched its own NFT market.
"Meanwhile, China recently banned cryptocurrency trading, which could result in cryptocurrency investors switching to NFT."
Canada came sixth and the United States tied with the Philippines, seventh.
Then New Zealand and finally the only European countries, Cyprus and the Netherlands, appear on the list.