The digital craze bringing big bucks - and big problems

NFTs are raising cash for conservation. But what on earth are they? And what are the downsides?

- GRAEME GREEN

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Graeme Green is a British photographer, journalist and travel writer. He has travelled the world for the last 15 years and his work has appeared in The Guardian and National Geographic. Graeme is also the founder of the New Big 5 wildlife photography project. Find out more at newbig5.com.

THE WORLD WASN'T CRYING OUT for a turtle-cat hybrid. But the arrival of "Turtle-cat' in 2018 proved such a hit that someone forked out US$25,000 for it. What they paid for wasn't a new-to-science discovery, a genetic experiment, a toy, or even an astounding work of art, but what is rather catchily known as a 'non-fungible token' (NFT).

If you're lost at the words 'fungible' or 'token', you're not alone. NFTs are a bewildering subject. Essentially, they're a digital trading system. “Non-fungible tokens are similar to cryptocurrencies, like Bitcoin," explains Peter Howson, senior lecturer in international development at Northumbria University. “The big difference is that, whereas individual Bitcoins all have the same value and are interchangeable, NFTs are more like antique baseball cards: each has a different value. Fungible means ‘mutually interchangeable' and 'of identical value'.

Anything digital can be represented as an NFT. They're crypto-collectibles rather than cryptocurrency. You collect and trade them with other people who share your interest.”

Turtle-cat, also known as Honu, was created by online blockchain game CryptoKitties, and was auctioned to raise money for marine conservation. It was a sign of things to come - NFTs now sell for ludicrous sums of money, and are proving a significant source of revenue for charities.