Tokenomics 101

Tokenomics, Cryptocurrency, NFT / By Ric

If you’re in the Web3 or NFT space chances are you’ve heard the term “tokenomics” being thrown around more than once. But what does it all mean? It’s pretty much a given that it is the combination of token + economics.

Essentially, it refers to the qualities of a crypto asset that make it appealing to investors and users. In other words, it helps us understand the supply and demand characteristics of the asset.

However, like most things in life, there are many more pieces to this intriguing puzzle. Below, we’ve explored and shed some light on tokenomics, making the subject easier to grasp.

What is tokenomics?

Before we go down the rabbit hole of tokenomics, we first need to understand what a token is. A token (not to be confused with a coin) is a digital unit of cryptocurrency that is used to represent a specific use on the blockchain.

Tokens can be used for a number of things but they are more commonly used for security, utility, or governance. These tokens are created with pre-set issuance schedules that are all created with an algorithm.

This helps everyone understand the supply of the token (ie how much has been made available). Although some smart contracts allow for the quantity to be increased and decreased, that would involve signing a new agreement and could be difficult to carry through.

This helps users know that their asset (and the creation thereof) is more predictable than the FIAT currencies we use daily.

We’re all aware that Bitcoin does in fact have a finite amount made available, 21 million to be precise. However, it will only cease creation around 2140 and until then new coins will decrease by half every four years (give or take) – otherwise known as Bitcoin halving – which was implemented to create scarcity and in turn put pressure on price.

The issuance schedule has also led the way for many others to have the same approach – such as Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin SV, and ZCash (all with a hard cap of 21 million). Other tokens have a much larger overall number being made available.

Dogecoin (and many others) on the other hand essentially have unlimited supply due to its issuance schedule. In other words, Bitcoin has a deflationary supply and Dogecoin has an inflationary supply.

What is tokenomics?

Okay so we’ve covered bits and pieces but let’s get down to business. Understanding the forces that will ultimately influence the supply and demand of a crypto asset is extremely important to investors of the respective asset.

One of the first questions that need to be addressed when discussing or reviewing a crypto asset’s tokenomics is “How will it be used?”. We’re basically asking if there is a clear link between using the platform and the asset.

If there is a link, it could lead to an increase in price due to the fact that for the service to grow it would require increased purchases and usage. However, if there is no link to the asset’s role in the platform or service, ( 🚩) what use or value is there really?

Other questions or points to ponder on include (but aren’t limited to):

How many coins or tokens currently exist?
How many will exist in the future? And how will they be created?
What is the distribution of the coins/tokens? Are some set aside for future team members and developers?
Is there any information that could point to some coins/tokens being lost, burned, deleted, or that are simply unusable? ( 🚩)

There are a few variables that could ultimately affect the tokenomics of a project:

Mining and staking
Yields
Burning of tokens
Supply (limited vs unlimited)
Allocation and vesting periods

How do the tokenomics determine value?

By understanding the tokenomics of an asset you could essentially understand where it’s going – and how valuable it could become (and ultimately whether or not it would be wise to invest). It is always recommended to DYOR before parting with your hard-earned (albeit FIAT) money.

Projects should have whitepapers made available to give further insight into the project and generally these would include the tokenomics – if not, simply ask the project heads for the tokenomics and they should be able to enlighten you – if not, 🚩.

From a project founder or developer side, it is crucial to review and understand the tokenomics of your project to ensure the project is deemed valuable and attractive to prospective investors.

Creating a token for your project

Cryptocurrency, NFT, Tokenomics / By Ric

If you’re in Web3 or building your own NFT project, chances are you’ve probably considered creating your own token as an added incentive to your community.

More often than not tokens are created as a project-linked currency of sorts.

Tokens can be used for a number of things including processing transactions; acting as a store of value; buying assets on a platform; voting rights in a dApp and crowdfunding.

What you need to know about creating a token

Like most things NFT-related, there’s some important information to consider before jumping in and creating your very own token.

Fortunately, we’ve made it super simple and consolidated all the essential juicy bits that you need to know.

In this piece we’ll cover the following:

Types of tokens (chains)
How to mint your own
Some links to mint your own

Types of tokens (chains)

As you may have guessed, the token you create will ultimately be determined by the chain your NFT project is being built on and the direction your project is taking.

There are three main chains that founders are minting their own tokens on, namely Binance, Ethereum, and Polygon.

Each chain essentially has its own token so you’ll have to decide which you’ll be building on or which ecosystem you’ll be attracting.

These tokens are:

BEP-20 (Binance Smart Chain)
ERC-20 (Ethereum)
MRC-20 (Polygon)

Cost and standards are major contributing factors when it comes to deciding which to go with. There are a number of reasons why you would choose to opt for one chain over another.

These include but aren’t limited to gas fees; requirements of the chain; transaction fees and security. Ethereum wins when it comes to security solely because it takes longer for verification (which can prove to be a pain sometimes).

However, there are a few flaws with the Ethereum model as we pointed out in our previous piece.

Ethereum is on the losing end when it comes to the other factors namely cost, speed, and requirements. BEP-20 for example is held to a much higher standard due to the fact they have stronger requirements than ERC-20.

BEP-20 transactions can be as quick as 3 seconds, whereas ERC-20 can exceed 15 seconds per transaction and with the flaw in scalability, the Ethereum chain is bogged down quite a bit when it comes to their transactions per second.

On the cost side, platforms like Coinmanufactory offer users the option of which coin they would like to create and outline the costs associated with each.

Here they are (subject to change)

BEP-20 will cost you 0.1BNB
ERC-20 will cost you 0.03ETH
MRC-20 will cost you as little as 37MATIC (we have seen it go up to around 200MATIC)

How to mint your own token

Okay, so by now you should already know which chain you’ll be working on. Now we’ll run through the general SOPs for creating your token, what you’ll need to have available, and the next steps.

Regardless of the platform you’re using to create your token, the first step would be to connect your wallet so the transaction can go through.

Please also ensure you have sufficient funds in your wallet in the correct currency of the chain you’ll be going with.

Next, you’ll need project specifics which include the token name, symbol and image* along with the quantity you want to make available and decimals (the standard is 18 but you can change that should you wish to).

Finally, you’ll need to decide how your token can be worked with in the future. Most of the platforms will give you the same but some may offer more or less.

These include:

Burnable (tokens can be burnt to decrease supply)
Mintable (tokens can be minted to increase supply)
Fees/Taxes
Holder redistribution

Where to mint your own

Great, now that you have an understanding of what type of tokens you can create, what they can be used for, and how to do it you’ll need to know where to go, right?

Here’s a list of platforms that allow you to create your own token:

As with everything in crypto, web3, and NFTs, it is important to Do Your Own Research (DYOR) before actioning anything.

The platforms we have listed above have their own terms and policies in place for a reason so we advise you to familiarise yourself with the platform and chain requirements before creating your own token.

Many of the platforms mentioned above give guides and videos on how to create your own token and the benefits – we suggest you also take a moment to go through them before diving in.

Create your coin on BSC, Ethereum and Polygon

We wish you the very best in this journey and feel free to browse through our other articles.

Proof of Work vs Proof of Stake

Cryptocurrency, NFT / By Ric

If you’re in the NFT space already, you’ll already know that the main launch of ETH2 is expected soon(ish) as they move away from a Proof of Work (PoW) and towards a Proof of Stake (PoS) model.

Why move from a Proof of Work to a Proof of Stake model?

In a nutshell, there are two consensus models used to validate transactions on the blockchain.

Proof of Work involves solving highly complex cryptographic equations using computer power, whereas Proof of Stake allows miners to stake their digital coins for the right to validate new transactions.

But what exactly is a Proof of Stake, and how does it differ from a Proof of Work? And what are the true benefits of changing? We’ll cover all of your burning questions right here.

In a PoW consensus, miners are actively competing against one another to solve these complex equations using their high-powered computers with the “winner” being awarded the ability to add a new block of transactions onto the blockchain and subsequently rewarded in the respective cryptocurrency for their work.

PoS requires miners to put up a “stake” of cryptocurrency before they can validate transactions. A miner’s capacity to perform this task will depend on the amount of coins they have put up for stake as well as how long they have been validating transactions.

Ultimately the more coins a single miner owns, the more power they will have for minting. The miner’s relative power is taken into account and a weighted algorithm chooses a miner at random to perform the task. Let’s see the scoreboard:

PoW: Powerful computers that use a significant amount of energy that use processes that eventually end up slowing down transaction speeds as the cryptocurrency network expands (causing a huge problem of scalability – one that Ethereum is currently experiencing)

The Proof of Stake model was introduced to solve the issues that were brought on by the Proof of Work model. Mainly scalability, energy consumption, environmental impact, and vulnerability to attacks.

Electricity & Environmental Impact

One of the major talking points (by critics) around blockchain technology and mining specifically is the huge amount of energy required to perform functions like validating transactions – which ultimately has a negative impact on the environment.

Proof of Work consensus models like Bitcoin (BTC-USD) has an energy consumption of 830kWh per transaction or 130TWh per year and Ethereum (ETH-USD) has a per-transaction energy cost of 50kWh or 26TWh per year.

Proof of Stake cryptocurrencies like Tezos (XTZ-USD) has a cost per transaction of just 30mWh or 60MWh per year.

By moving to a PoS consensus model Ethereum will have a huge drop in energy consumption and hopefully lead to increased acceptance and adoption.

Proof of Work consensus leaves very little profit margin for miners after they take into account the electricity consumption and computing costs of their NFT project. Proof of Stake mining results in faster speeds and a significantly lower energy cost and impact on the environment through emissions.

Proof of Work vs Proof of Stake — *Source: Durwin Ho*

Security

Another benefit of Proof of Stake over Proof of Work is the reduced vulnerability to attacks. Proof of Work relies on miners abiding by the consensus rules when validating transactions.

This isn’t always guaranteed and a “majority attack” can occur when a specific group control 50+% of the mining power. This can ultimately lead to them preventing transactions from being approved, creating forks, and many other problems.

Proof of Stake, on the other hand, requires miners to provide a stake which would lead them to avoid forks or they would ultimately lose their stake they have fronted. With PoW there is essentially no benefit to the attacker to disrupt or compromise the chain without coming out on the losing end.

At the end of the day Proof of Stake consensus model provides the following benefits over Proof of Work:

Reduced energy use
Less environmental impact
Faster transactions
Increased security
Increased scalability

Given the above benefits, we can expect more alternatives to Proof of Work in the future.

Creating your NFT Project has never been easier

Marketplaces, NFT, NFTs / By Ric

With NFTs (and smart contracts) growing in popularity, there has been an increase in the number of brands and individuals creating their own projects.

If you’re a developer it may be easier said than done – until now. The rise of new technology has led to the opportunity to create a tool that makes it easy for the non-coders to get in on the fun.

If you happen to be someone who has only just learnt about the gold rush, this platform provides everything you need—from pick to shovel.

Creating your NFT Project with Thirdweb

Creating an NFT project has now become easier than you think. Armed with all the essentials, you can let your imagination go wild. But, before you get started, here’s a quick rundown of everything you need to know about utilizing Thirdweb.

Meet Thirdweb

Thirdweb, which has just undergone a version change, to version 2.0, is backed by Web2 heavyweights Steven Bartlett, Gary Vaynerchuk and Mark Cuban.

This goes to show that it’s really not something to be overlooked. The platform itself is super easy to navigate and the BIG PLUS is that they now take ZERO commission from project owners.

Previously they took 5% of your royalty (so if you had a 5% royalty setup, they took 5% of the 5%).

They have a whole host of contract types available, namely:

NFTs (ERC721 standard)

These are collections or one-of-a-kind tokens with fully customizable properties

Marketplaces (whitelabel)

Your own marketplace to let the community buy and sell tokens and NFTs

Tokens (ERC20 standard)

Custom social tokens, governance tokens and currencies you can control

Packs

Loot boxes full of NTFs with rarity-based unboxing mechanics

Drops (ERC721 with lazy minting; ERC 1155 standard with lazy minting)

Timed drops for users to easily claim NFTs and tokens (V2 allows projects to dictate phases of deployment and the specifics around each phase)

Splits

Royalty splits to manage your project revenue and fund distribution

Within each of these categories, you’ll find a few sub-categories that help you decide which route to take.
There are a few other benefits of Thirdweb that may not be evident to newbies:

Guides (these help you understand each contract in detail as well as help you with implementation)
A very helpful Discord channel
Testnet feature (which allows you trial each contract before spending real money on contract minting)
Access to a few chains (Ethereum, Polygon, Avalanche and Flow – with Solana and Flow coming soon)

The true power comes in with their SDK functionality which is, in most parts, editable through their JS snippets. For those that aren’t proficient in coding, the embed feature does the job too. Some of the standout project types include membership NFTs, Public Marketplaces, DAOs, PFP Collections and Blockchain Games.

Teams can also collaborate on projects with ease with the head of projects able to assign permissions to each team member like full permissions, minting permissions, interaction permissions, and transfer permissions.

As mentioned previously, Thirdweb also assists project creators with their own meticulously created and community-tested guides which covers everything from getting started to contract types and implementation of SDKs and embeds.

We will be reviewing other platforms and solutions that make project creation and management easier for non-coders and coders alike, so remember to check-in and see what we’re up to in the NFT & Web3 space.

Important Web3 Concepts: Part 2

NFT, Community, NFTs, Trends and Forecasts / By Ric

We’ve entered a new wave of the web – Web3. The opportunities and possibilities are endless and venture capitalists, developers, and content creators have seen this and they’re getting in early.

However, the majority of online users are still battling to understand basic web3 concepts in the web3 metaverse.

Entering the NFT/Web 3 space? Here are important Web 3 Concepts you need to know!

In our previous piece, Important Web3 Concepts: Part 1, we covered a handful of important concepts – to recap: Blockchain, gas fees, layers, and tokens.

Now we’ll be discussing the second batch of important web3 concepts you need to know if you’re entering the Web3/NFT space.

In this article, we’ll touch on the following concepts:

Address
Alpha
Ape
DAO
Fractionalized

Address (Wallet Address)

Also known as your public key, this is an alphanumeric code that serves as the address for your blockchain wallet – similar to your bank account number.

Other users can send assets (NFTs, cryptocurrency etc.) to your wallet but only you can access them using your private key.

Your wallet address is usually linked to the likes of MetaMask, WalletConnect, or Coinbase. Web3 websites generally request you “connect wallet” in order to either enter or make use of their platform.

Alpha

This refers to valuable or “insider” information regarding the value of digital assets like cryptocurrency and NFTs. An Alpha leak usually refers to a leak from inside a project that could lead to outsized returns that are over and above the return offered by the market or benchmarks – similar to insider trading.

Ape

This refers to the act of going all in or investing heavily in a coin or NFT project. This is sometimes a reaction to hype or FOMO, or done without too much know-how of a project or asset. The origins are a bit blurry but carry no negative connotations. If you go “ape”, you generally go all in.

DAO

A DAO (Decentralised Autonomous Organisation) is an organisation based on open-source code and completely governed/run by its users and members with NO central authority.

They generally focus on a specific type of project or mission and all functions are fulfilled by guidelines or rules written on the blockchain. Smart contracts lay out the fundamental rules and the code itself can be publicly audited.

Fractionalized

Fractionalisation refers to the process of locking an NFT into a smart contract and then dividing it into smaller parts which are then also issued as their own fungible token. This lowers the price of ownership and allows artwork or other forms of digital assets to be owned by a community.

Fractionalized ownership can be applied to DAOs wanting to purchase blue-chip NFTs, a group wanting to buy a house together, or even a musician wanting to release an album to their fans and have the fans own part of the future success of the album.

Dapp

A dApp or Decentralised Application is an app built on open-source code that lives on the blockchain. These exist independent of centralised people, organisations, or groups and offer an incentive to users for maintaining them through the issuing of reward tokens.

Important Web3 Concepts: Part 1

NFT, Community, NFTs, Trends and Forecasts / By Ric

We’ve entered a new wave of the web – Web3. The opportunities and possibilities are endless and venture capitalists, developers, and content creators have seen this and they’re getting in early. However, the majority of online users are still battling to understand basic web3 concepts.

That’s where we come in – and there’s A LOT to try to digest so we’ve broken it down into two parts with 4 key concepts in each. We’d hate for you to lose interest or simply be overwhelmed. If you’re still battling to grasp what NFTs are, have a read here.

We’d hate for you to lose interest or simply be overwhelmed. If you’re still battling to grasp what NFTs are, have a read here.

Simplifying Web3 Concepts

In this article, we’ll touch on the following concepts:

• Blockchain
• Gas Fees
• Layers
• Tokens

Although we’ve already covered some of these terms in other articles, we’ll dive in deeper and explain these in more depth.

Blockchain

This is where it all begins – it’s possibly one of the most important concepts to grasp. It is essentially the backbone of the entire NFT industry. In a nutshell, one transaction is a “block” with a whole group of these forming the blockchain.

This is a whole new way of logging activity and transactions, security, and more.

Important Web3 Concepts: Part 1 - Blockchain

Blockchains have a few core features which we’ll also dive into:

Decentralised

This means that blockchains aren’t reliant on centralized, Web2 networks to stay online (like an Amazon server). They run entirely on independent nodes and hundreds of thousands of computers from around the world make this possible.

If you’re a miner and you’re one of the cogs that makes blockchain transactions run, you’ll benefit from earning a part of the transaction fee.

Public and auditable

Being publicly available and auditable you’re able to view every single transaction on the blockchain – providing full transparency.

An example of this is etherscan.io – Ethereum-based transactions can be viewed here along with the transaction value, the addresses involved, the type of contract, and the transaction ID.

Incorruptable

Security and corruption are plaguing the Web2 space and have been for decades. By incorruptible it means that once a transaction/activity has been performed it is stored as a hash on the blockchain.

If someone wants to change any aspect of the transaction, the fraudulent transaction would require more “power” than the rest of the network – which is impossible.

Gas Fees

Gas Fee is the transaction fee that users pay when a transaction is performed. These differ from blockchain to blockchain. The fees go to the “miners” that provide the computational power to make the transactions possible.

Ethereum currently has a major issue with gas fees (with Eth 2.0 apparently changing that – but no one knows when it will be launched). This proves to be a huge scalability issue for the chain and causes smaller projects to opt for Layer 2 options like Solana, with Solana’s Gas Fees being pretty close to $0.00.

Gas fees are represented as GWEI – Gigawei – and represent 0.000000001 ETH. These costs are determined by cost and speed.

Important Web3 Concepts: Part 1 - Gas Fees

Layers

The blockchain ecosystem is split between Layer 1 and Layer 2. Layer 1 refers to the blockchain itself (like Ethereum, Bitcoin, Solana, and Flow). Layer 2 on the other hand refers to a network or technology that operates on top of an existing Layer 1 in order to improve scalability and efficiency.

How it works

A part of the burden is transferred to an adjacent system or technology
This adjacent technology handles part of the network processing
After all is done the end results are sent to the main blockchain

Important Web3 Concepts: Part 1 - Layers — *Source: Bitlevex*

L2 takes a lot of pressure off the main blockchain and this means the network doesn’t become congested and it becomes more scalable. Polygon and Immutable are the leading L2 solutions for Ethereum. L2 solutions allow the small guy or project to take part in Web3 without having to pay exorbitant gas fees.

Tokens

Tokens represent tradable units on the blockchain. You may have realised already that cryptocurrencies are essentially made up of tokens. The tokens like Bitcoin and Ether are fungible – meaning 1 ETH holds the same value as another ETH – unlike NFTs.

Platforms like Thirdweb make it easier for projects to launch their own token, and decide on the quantity and distribution.

With NFTs, they are Non-Fungible, so each would hold a different value (even if they’re part of the same collection).

In the next part, we’ll discuss smart contracts, Hashes, exchanges, DAOs, and marketplaces.

Find The Latest NFT Drops Here

NFT, Trends and Forecasts / By Ric

Hundreds of NFT projects are launching daily from all corners of the world and on a variety of different blockchains and marketplaces. It may become tricky to stay on top of them and to know when they’re launching, the chain is used, price, utility, etc.

No one has the time to go and scour through OpenSea, LooksRare, Solanart and co. to find the hottest new projects. Apart from features on popular platforms, we’ve put a list of 10 platforms and methods you can follow if you’re interested in staying in the know re the latest NFT drops, even the secret or exclusive ones.

These include the likes of:

NFT Calendar (nftcalendar.io)
NFT Evening
Crypto Potato
Next NFT Drop
NFT Solana (nftsolana.io)
Upcoming NFT
Early Minter
NFT Drops Calendar
NFT Insider
NFT Sniper

NFT Calendar

NFTCalendar is the first release and event calendar for the growing Non-Fungible Token industry. They cover the most interesting events and NFT drops across marketplaces and platforms.

Website

NFT Evening

NFT Evening is dedicated to supporting mainstream NFT adoption by making content fun & accessible. Learn about NFT collectibles, NFT art, and the best blockchain games that even let you earn free crypto!

Whether you want to invest in NFTs, create NFTs or simply collect them, NFT Evening is the first stop for all the NFT news you need!

Website

Crypto Potato

CryptoPotato was established at the beginning of 2016 by crypto early adopters. CryptoPotato has recently become one of the world’s leading information sources for crypto investors.

They insist on original high-quality content, and our site has set a goal to always look from the crypto investor’s point of view. We believe in Bitcoin, we believe in crypto, we believe in blockchain technology.

The platform covers crypto news, margin trading, guides and DeFi news along with access to scholarships and IEO lists.

Website

Next NFT Drop

Explore the latest NFT launches and hottest NFT drops from an expansive NFT projects list. Next NFT Drop is the pioneering NFT platform that provides traders and collectors with relevant resources regarding upcoming launches, new Non-Fungible Token releases, and additional information regarding each project.

Simply filter through the NFT projects to find your preferred drop.

Website

NFT Solana

NFT SOLANA Calendar keeps you updated with the most promising NFTs projects released on Solana. The platform also allows you to add the projects to your Google Calendar so you don’t miss a moment.

Track the live stats across socials, mint price (SOL), quantity available etc. of the upcoming Solana-based projects.

Website

Upcoming NFT

The upcomingnft’s aim is to help creators and contribute to their growth in the crypto art sector. As a result, any developer can freely add his or her drop or event to the upcomingnft.

This website is dedicated to giving you information about generative art and collectibles. Get access to NFT launches; NFT Giveaways; NFT Events & NFT Auctions.

Website

Early Minter

Join thousands of other NFT Project creators and list your NFT Project for FREE on EarlyMinter. They also offer a featured placement where your project will be placed prominently on all categories and our homepage.

Website

NFT Drops Calendar

With over 150,000 organic monthly users, they keep an eye on everything happening in the industry and cover current news and events for our community to stay updated.

Website

NFT Insider

NFT Insider aims to give you everything you need to navigate the NFT landscape in a fun, safe, and informed way – from the latest drops and in-depth interviews to community highlights, exclusive first-looks at the latest blockchain games and a whole lot more.

Through their articles, videos, podcasts and livestreams, if you want to know what’s happening across the NFT space, NFT Insider is the place to be.

Website

NFT Sniper

On NFT Sniper you’ll find all info on upcoming NFT releases and projects that are released yet. Check the rarity of individual NFTs, check on which marketplaces they are listed, and find their latest prices.

Website

——–

There’s definitely no shortage of platforms to subscribe to and browse if you’re looking for upcoming drops, hot projects, and information on your favorite projects.

But as always, DYOR when it comes to minting.

Legitimacy of NFT Projects – Doxxing, White papers and Utility

NFT / By Ric

Over the last few months the NFT market has exploded globally, which has resulted in a copious amount of NFT projects being launched daily – with the major talking points being around whether or not the project is doxxed; the quality or existence of a project white paper; and the utility on offer for those that get involved or mint an NFT.

With projects being called out for so-called rug-pulling (scams or not following through on pre-mint promises) many prospective minters or users are growing increasingly aware and hesitant that they could be holding the short end of a brittle stick if they minted.

Let’s discuss a few key points that affect NFT Projects:

Doxxing (what is it? How do you do it? What are the benefits?)
White papers
Utility

Doxxing

Doxxing has been on the lips of NFT & Crypto project owners and users since the beginning but more recently it has become a topic that gets brought up on project Discord servers, Twitter, etc. But what is Doxxing really?

Doxxing reveals previously private information of an individual or organisation linked to an NFT project.

Although it’s nothing new, we all know the faces of companies in the real world, but in when it comes to NFTs, Web3, and the Metaverse, people can easily hide behind a pseudonym/alias and not be “doxxed” in case the pawpaw hits the fan or the project ends up being a rug pull.

More recently, the identities behind the blue-chip NFT project Bored Ape Yacht Club was leaked by BuzzFeed – revealing the founders of this mega project. Although there were mixed reactions to how it was carried out, this could prove to be beneficial to Web3 projects both currently and in the future.

White Papers

In a nutshell, white papers give investors and possible minters a backstory, path, and technical information around a project.

More and more projects are deemed more trustworthy if they have a white paper – showing the users where they’re going (roadmap), what their project will be offering in terms of utility, how they’ll be building their project, and any other information that may be deemed necessary to reinforce legitimacy.

Don’t get us wrong – there have been projects that had white papers in the public domain that ended up being rug pulls, but more often than not the projects that have white papers are transparent around their goals for the project.

There are a few resources online about what white papers should entail, how they’ll benefit the reader and when they’ll come in handy for the project.

Utility

Utility! Utility! Utility! We could go on for hours around utility in Web3 & NFT projects. Major marketplaces like Opensea are flooded with hollow collections that offer nothing more than a JPEG to those who mint the NFT. But what is utility?

Whether it’s redeemable rewards or membership NFTs, a rising number of creators and developers are leveraging blockchain-backed tokens to build and support their communities. Buy and sell scarce digital goods from the likes of POAP, Urbit ID, and Polyient Games.
OpenSea

NFTs that offer utility offer clearly defined intrinsic value over and above the usual scarcity/rarity associated with the NFT by default. As a collective, utility NFTs are still in their infancy and that opens up a world of opportunities for brands, companies, and creatives when it comes to offering utility.

To sum it up, utility gives the owner a purpose and reason to own the NFT with pride. By owning the utility NFT, holders could potentially gain access to exclusive membership areas, an event, access to a game, have voting power in a DAO, or receive perpetual royalties or drops from the project or collaborations.

One of the best utility projects is Axie Infinity – minters of this project will gain entry to their Discord, Marketplace, and Mavis Hub Community. You’ll also gain an ownership deed to a digital item in the game, which without the tokens may be expensive to acquire.

Legitimacy of NFT Projects – Doxxing, White papers, and Utility - Axie Infinity Utility Projects

——–
It goes without saying that Web3 & NFT projects will continue to flood the market, but prospective minters are advised to DYOR before investing in projects.

8 NFT Marketplaces You Should Explore

NFT, Marketplaces / By Ric

With the massive rise of NFTs in the previous months, it has become increasingly difficult to decide which NFT marketplace to choose to sell/buy non-fungible tokens.

The 3 points you should consider would be the type of art that the marketplace is known for, the fees associated with buying/selling, and the blockchains supported.

The majority of NFT marketplaces use Ethereum as their base, whereas others have opted for the likes of Polygon (MATIC) to save on gas fees and to have a better carbon footprint.

We’ll briefly cover our top 10 NFT marketplaces:

Opensea

There’s no doubt that Opensea is the forerunner in the NFT Marketplace space. It is one of the largest and most established marketplace at this point in time. It is home to a range of NFT types including art, photography, music, collectibles, and many more.

The platform is very easy to use and free to get started. The one draw-card is that it supports over 150 cryptocurrency payment tokens and offers both a gas (Ethereum) and gas-free (Polygon) platform for creators and buyers.

Opensea also offers a range of resources that help users navigate getting started, buying, selling, creating, and general use of their platform, and navigating the NFT realm.

Rarible

Rarible is a community-owned and governed NFT platform that uses its own token, RARI, to allow users to vote on platform upgrades and any moderation that may be needed.

The platform generally attracts a more niche market compared to Opensea – with the majority of users being into sports, gaming, and media along with artists releasing full collections.

The platform allows users to choose between Ethereum, RARI and Tezos at checkout. Rarible has partnered with some well-known brands, including the likes of Adobe, to secure unique work and create unique NFTs.

Binance NFT

Binance NFT is considered to be one of the most fool-proof NFT marketplaces due to it being one of the largest and the few that are supported by its own blockchain.

The sheer size and scale of the platform opens it up to exclusive partnerships and events/drops for members. The best part – if you hold BNB (the Binance currency) you can use it on the marketplace along with others like ETH, and BUSD.

SuperRare

The name gives it all away – this marketplace brings the touch of class a real-world gallery would. The platform is on the Ethereum blockchain and is comprised of curated, rare artwork. It has no time for meme-centric projects.

SuperRare doesn’t allow just anyone to sell on their marketplace, with reports stating that only 1% of artists who apply actually get accepted. This reinforces the exclusiveness of the platform and ensures you get highly-curated pieces of art.

Have a look at the SuperRare blog here.

MakersPlace

Every NFT available on MakersPlace is authentic and truly unique. The creations offer distinct authenticity by being digitally signed by the creator and recorded/verified on the blockchain. By only releasing a limited number of authentic creations, you are guaranteed scarcity and uniqueness when you mint.

MakersPlace offers a range of resources to creators and puts them in touch with like-minded individuals while putting their art in the hands (wallets) of those that appreciate unique art. Somewhat like SuperRare, MakersPlace can get quite expensive with the art being from established artists.

KnownOrigin

As one of the oldest marketplaces, KnownOrigin is focused on offering rare and collectible drops (and like the 2 marketplaces above it can get pricey). The differentiating factor here is that they are focused on time-released events, known as drops, that enable artists to control the number of copies that get released/minted. This in essence creates scarcity and could lead to the price jumping substantially.

Just like SuperRare, artists need to go through a vetting process before they are able to sell on KnownOrigin. But for the buyers, it’s a really easy-to-use platform and guarantees unique, limited edition pieces of art.

Mintable

Mintable makes NFTs easy to navigate and understand. The platform is backed by billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban and boasts a variety of content from the art, music, gaming, video, and media space.

For those that aren’t well versed in NFTs, crypto wallets, or blockchains, Mintable is probably the place to start selling (if you aren’t already). Creators can turn any piece of digital art into an NFT (GIFs, JPegs, Videos, Audio, etc) and add it to your “store” on the platform.

NFT Marketplaces you should explore - Mintable

Mintable also offers its resources to sellers through the Mintable University. These courses are done through Mintable University and cover the basics like What are NFTs; How to Mint; Creating a store; Marketing your NFTs and a general overview of NFTs and cryptocurrency. View the resource platform here.

Momint

Momint is putting South Africa on the map when it comes to easy-to-use NFT marketplaces. The platform has dubbed itself as the “NFT Marketplace For When The Bubble Bursts” and claims to be the platform that fuels the creative ecosystem.

The platform allows users to pay for NFTs with a credit card and they don’t need to have any prior crypto or NFT experience to take part. Buyers can view a range of NFT types including collectibles, derivatives, art, utility, and many more. They currently support listing on a range of blockchains including Ethereum, Polygon, and xDai with easy-to-deploy smart contracts for businesses and creators.

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There’s definitely no shortage of marketplaces for creators and buyers to get involved in NFTs – regardless of their artistic taste, budgets, and blockchain preference.

The different types of NFTs

NFT / By Ric

A lot has been said around the potential around Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) – the risks, rewards, use cases, etc. have been discussed between techies, entrepreneurs, creators, and everyone in between. In a nutshell, they can display the true value of an asset with the functionalities of blockchain.

The space has recently exploded with new, innovative projects being developed at a rapid rate of knots to push the envelope more and more. There is a diverse range of NFTs out there and it is always wise to understand the types before diving in and creating your own project or investing in one.

What Are The Different Types of NFTs?

The major categories of NFTs include (among others) digital artworks, collectibles, artwork, music, gaming, domain names, and event tickets.

Let’s discuss each of these briefly:

Digital Artwork

Possibly the most popular category, this category is also the foundation to form galleries of digital art for creators from around the world. This includes images, video clips, and drawings. The latest form of art, “crypto art” allows artists to create pieces and sell them through non-fungible tokens that are stored on the blockchain.

Artists are then able to claim royalties on future (secondary) sales as a form of perpetual income. Imagine getting a cut every time someone traded/sold a piece of your work, forever. Pretty cool right?

On the flip side, the super-rich is using this as an investment vehicle of sorts. You basically sell your ownership rights and gain profit off the back of market demand.

Collectibles

It’s about time we took a look at the “digital” equivalent of our worldly interests. With the booming market, you’d be surprised as to what you can find in the NFT space – from limited edition sports cards, moments, and collectibles.

An early project in the collectibles category, and one that’s still going strong, is the Cryptokitties project. This project gives you a “kitten” with unique traits and the traits determine the rarity (which can determine the value). Brands like Marvel, Coca-Cola, GUCCI, and the like are also hopping on the bandwagon and creating their own NFT Collection. Read more here.

Music

Musicians from around the world have often been the victims of not receiving what’s duly owed to them due to greedy middlemen, agents, stations, and other governing bodies. Well, that’s all about to change.

NFTs are shaking up a number of huge industries, including music. The concept is actually pretty simple if you take the tech out of the equation – instead of artists waiting months or years to reach the masses and to make some decent dough, by selling/minting their music on the blockchain (like through Royal.io) they can reach millions in a single day.

A great example is musician Grimes who netted a cool $5.8million in just 20 minutes after releasing a piece of music as an NFT. Artists are now able to sell directly to their fan base and benefit from it.

The fans are also winning by being part of the bigger picture and getting the music “straight from the source” without agents and middlemen in the picture and they end up benefiting from the success of an album, track, or project.

As music is passed on or sold on the secondary market, the artists will continue to make money – even if their music is used in other tracks, the blockchain makes it somewhat easier to track usage and pay those that deserve to be paid.