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  Cryptocurrency has become a hot topic in Nigeria since its ban by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). However, an element of the blockchain technology powering cryptocurrencies has also been trending since January.
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This other branch of the uses of the blockchain is tagged as Non Fungible Tokens (NFTs) wherein digital art can be minted into NFTs before they are exchanged using a cryptocurrency on the blockchain. Consequently, NFTs are blockchain-based records and they can be used to tag or signify the ownership of digital assets such as digital art. Digital art which may include digital illustrations, short animations, GIFs or collectables is minted into NFTs using Ethereum’s ERC 20 or ERC-721 standard token. An NFT is, therefore, a way of ensuring a digital artwork is unique and tradable. Since NFTs broke everyone’s imagination, marketplaces that enable transactions of NFTs have been touted as an alternative to a Wall Street-dominated financial system. If the hype is to be believed, it is a system where artists are able to create, sell, trade and are paid on their own terms, which may displace elites and hierarchies of the art world.

Minting Your Digital Artwork

While it may cost between $70 to $100 to mint a digital artwork, it can also be free, depending on the platform. The real costs of minting crypto art accrue from ‘gas fees’. However, for the platforms where one can mint for free, you will be charged a “gas fee”, once your crypto art is sold. The process of minting your digital art is perhaps the most straightforward part of the process and is not dissimilar to uploading a video to Youtube By minting your work, you are ensuring it becomes a non-fungible token, or NFT, replete with its own unique and trackable metadata. Effectively, you are ensuring your creation has a trackable provenance. You are making a singular asset that can now be sold and owned.
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Creating And Funding Your Wallet

If you are using one of the NFT marketing platforms where you have to pay ‘gas fees’ before minting, you will need to have some crypto in your wallet before proceeding. A wallet consists of a ‘public address’ and a ‘private key’ which enables you to have access to the platform, sign off on transactions and manage the balance. Anyone can fund your wallet but only you the owner can access it with the private key. Examples of wallets include BitPay, Bither and Unstoppable, Metamask, Fortmatic (Magic). You can buy crypto from a cryptocurrency exchange such as Binance, BitMEX or Coindesk directly with traditional fiat currencies, such as US dollars, Euros or Pounds sterling, or even the Naira before the CBN ban. However, the option of peer-to-peer (P2P) where an existing seller is looking to sell crypto by creating a new buy order still exists for Nigerians on Binance. The cost (gas fees) of minting your crypto art is then deducted from your wallet and you are ready to sell your digital art (crypto art).

Selling Your Crypto Art (NFT)

The next stage is marketing your crypto art. ‘Dropping’ your crypto art implies you are putting it up for auction on the blockchain. A catchy headline, a narrative, a copy, or even a social media campaign, or article may be helpful in selling your crypto art more quickly. Featured Image Source: Blockchain News
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This article was first published on 26th April 2021

adedoyin

Macaddy is mostly a farmer in the day who also dabbles into technology at night, in search of other cutting edge intersections. He's on Twitter @i_fix_you

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