Fad Or Future?

Till a few years ago‚ a very small fraction of investors saw potential in NFTs . But in 2021‚ the market opened up to massive nft pitches globally. Is this a passing fad‚ or will the growth continue?

- Eena Jain Kaushal

A decade ago, you’d have scoffed at the idea of a wedding in virtual space. Not any more. A Chennai-based couple recently celebrated their wedding—Asia’s first on the metaverse—where people interacted through their avatars. Even the bride’s late father attended!

That’s not all. The couple also launched non-fungible tokens (NFTs) featuring them and the wedding invitation. “We launched 10 unique NFTs of around $25-150 which were resold for $1,000-2,000. The response was huge,” says Dinesh Kshatriyan, the groom, who is a project associate at IIT Madras.

NFTs have come a long way from the time when only celebrities created and sold them for millions. “NFTs are slowly but surely becoming a part of our everyday lives. Not only are NFTs a great business opportunity, they are also a new way for people to enjoy themselves while making money. That’s why NFTs are here to stay,” says Toshendra Sharma, Founder and CEO, NFTically, a Polygonbacked NFT marketplace.

As the world embraces the metaverse, NFTs will become the thing to own. “Owning an NFT would give people access to certain exclusive things in the metaverse... Collectors can access unique and credible artworks in the form of NFTs from around the globe. Since the NFT market is booming, some collectors are also looking at NFTs as a long-term investment option,” says Sandesh B. Suvarna, Co-founder and Vice President, WazirX NFT Marketplace.

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