In an attempt to define NFTs briefly, one could describe how most cryptocurrency tokens are fungible (exchangeable with another token identical to it) while NFTs are the opposite (one-of-a-kind tokens). Since so much more can actually go into an NFT, they can be quite difficult to describe in a succinct manner. You may have heard definitions like “it’s digital art stored on the blockchain”, or the disapproving generalization that NFTs are merely “overpriced JPEGs”. While such statements are polarising and debatable, this is not the full picture of what NFTs have to offer. So what is the true value of an NFT? NFTs Make Asset Authentication Simple Because NFTs are stored on the blockchain, their existence is permanently registered on a trusted network. Every transaction involving the transfer of an NFT from wallet to wallet since its creation is also permanently recorded. This provides an innovative, solid record of authentication. How is this useful in reality? Consider what recently happened to YouTuber, NFT and Pokémon card collector Logan Paul. He paid $3.5 million on what he thought was a “sealed & authenticated box of 1st Edition Pokémon cards”, only to find that was not the case. Interestingly, the box had been validated as authentic by the Baseball Card Exchange. Bolillo Lajan San, the well-known and respected card collector who sold him the box also believed it was legitimate, which raises some questions...
