by Antonio Madeira | May 23, 2023 | Blockchain
A new report published by Reflexivity Research highlights the rapid pace at which the financialization of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) is progressing. It urges more caution when dealing with the industry as it is still arguably young but very promising which makes it a target for scammers.
Insights and Caveats: The Growth of NFTs as financial products
Reflexivity Research’s report sheds light on the expansion of NFTs as financial instruments, offering valuable insights while refraining from providing investment advice. The report emphasizes the importance of considering specific considerations when exploring the financial potential of NFTs and highlights the pivotal role that market factors play in propelling the financialization of NFTs.
The burgeoning popularity of NFTs as a lucrative avenue for artists to monetize their assets is accompanied by a notable surge in their complexity and intricacy, encompassing diverse interactions such as trading, lending, and borrowing. Nevertheless, the report also expresses apprehension regarding the potential reputational and environmental ramifications linked to the growing financialization of NFTs.
BLEND and Blur: Driving the financialization of NFTs
The report highlights the emergence of BLEND, an NFT loan platform, as a significant factor in the financialization of NFTs. BLEND, an innovative platform that integrates the concepts of “borrowing” and “lending,” enables users to utilize their valuable blue-chip collections as collateral when seeking loans.
Furthermore, the report acknowledges the rapid ascent of Blur, an NFT marketplace that strives to deliver a top-tier user interface and seamless experience for spot trading, catering to institutional-grade standards.
Beyond expensive JPEGs: NFTs transforming traditional assets
Contrary to the prevailing notion of NFTs as mere extravagant JPEGs for profile pictures, the report illuminates their ability to introduce financial dynamics into traditionally non-financial or illiquid assets. This groundbreaking potential extends to realms such as artworks, real estate, private equity investments, and film and media rights. NFTs achieve this transformative feat by digitizing one-of-a-kind items and facilitating their seamless trade on a blockchain.
Anthony Georgiades, co-founder of Pastel Network, passionately underscores the revolutionary impact of NFTs within the art market. He emphasizes the urgent need for an innovative model of patronage that transcends the realm of NFT drops. This transformative approach aims to reshape various facets of the art world, encompassing artist selection, financial support, and the very process of art commissioning and creation. Georgiades further highlights the positive ripple effects of NFTs on well-established financial processes, including loan collateralization, insurance, and debt management.
Skepticism and challenges: Debating the role of NFTs
Despite the prevailing optimism surrounding NFTs as a vehicle for enhanced financial inclusivity, there are skeptics who cast doubt on their potential. Mark Lurie, CEO of Shipyard Software and a director of The Foundation for Art & Blockchain (FAB), expressed reservations concerning the transformative impact of NFTs within the art market. Lurie contended that achieving a genuine revolution would demand more than the mere adoption of NFT drops; it would necessitate fundamental changes in artist selection, financial backing, and the overarching process of art creation.
NFT Financialization: Opportunities, concerns, and the way forward
The Reflexivity Research report illustrates the swift progression of NFTs’ financialization, underscoring its continued advancement. While NFTs present novel prospects for artists to monetize their creations and possess the capacity to instigate transformative changes across multiple industries, apprehensions concerning environmental consequences and reputational concerns remain.
The escalating intricacy and interplay of NFTs serve as a testament to their mounting importance within the financial domain. As the world wrestles with the implications brought forth by the financialization of NFTs, stakeholders face the task of navigating these developments while carefully considering the wider ramifications for both the art market and the financial sector.
by Antonio Madeira | May 23, 2023 | Blockchain
NFTfi, a leading NFT lending platform, has announced the launch of Earn Season 1, the next phase of its loyalty program, NFTfi Rewards.
NFTfi launches Earn season 1: Fostering responsible NFT lending
The objective of the program is to encourage responsible lending in the expanding NFT market and cultivate a robust credit environment. During Earn Season 1, participants have the opportunity to accumulate exclusive reward points by engaging in borrower-friendly loans and displaying responsible lending behavior.
Stephen Young, the Co-Founder and CEO of NFTfi, expresses the platform’s conviction that NFT lending holds significant influence over the trajectory of the NFT space. In order to establish an environment that promotes responsible practices and avoids predatory lending, NFTfi has launched this loyalty program. Young underscores the significance of incentivizing responsible lending behaviors within the NFT ecosystem.
Incentivizing responsible behavior
The calculation principles of Earn Points are designed to incentivize responsible conduct among lenders and borrowers. Points are exclusively earned through repaid loans, which encourages lenders to mitigate default risks by utilizing conservative loan-to-value ratios (LTVs) while discouraging borrowers from acquiring excessive debt. Additionally, higher points are awarded for larger and longer loans, granting borrowers greater flexibility in terms of loan sizes and durations. Loans with lower interest rates (APR) are also prioritized, motivating lenders to provide borrower-friendly rates and risk-appropriate LTVs.
Earning, securing, and winning: The journey of earn points in NFTfi
By fulfilling the obligation of repaying qualifying loans, participants accrue Earn Points. Initially, these points are classified as “unsecured points” and can be accessed in the NFTfi Rewards cockpit for review. Once the loan has been fully repaid, these points undergo a transformation, becoming “secured points.” Both unsecured and secured Earn Points are showcased on the NFTfi Leaderboard, which provides visibility to users. As Season 1 draws to a close, the 500 wallets that have accumulated the highest number of secured points will be granted a multiplier of 2.5x, boosting their final balance.
NFTfi: empowering NFT holders with decentralized lending
NFTfi.com is a highly successful decentralized lending platform that operates on the Ethereum blockchain, fostering peer-to-peer transactions. This platform empowers NFT holders to borrow ETH, USDC, and DAI cryptocurrency, leveraging their non-fungible tokens as collateral. The utilization of smart contracts ensures secure and transparent interactions directly between borrowers and lenders. NFTfi provides NFT holders with the means to unlock the value of their assets, accessing liquidity, while enabling lenders to earn interest on their funds. Since its establishment in May 2020, users have engaged in transactions exceeding $400 million on the NFTfi smart contracts.
According to a report by MarketsandMarkets, the global NFT lending market is undergoing rapid expansion and is projected to reach a valuation of $13.6 billion USD by 2027. NFT lending offers notable advantages, including the provision of liquidity to NFT holders who can employ their assets as collateral for loans. Moreover, it addresses crucial concerns such as the limited availability of traditional financing options for NFT holders and the necessity for a robust credit market within the realm of NFTs.
Proceed with caution: Assessing the risks in NFT lending
NFTfi is dedicated to recognizing and rewarding authentic users while actively discouraging wash loans through a range of measures. Loans characterized by APRs below 2% or durations shorter than 3 days, as well as associated wallets, are ineligible for earning points. It is important to emphasize that, although Earn Points are presently non-transferable and cannot be redeemed, they serve as an indication of the loyalty level exhibited by NFTfi users. Additionally, it should be noted that certain individuals, including US residents and those situated within the US, are not eligible to participate in the NFTfi Rewards loyalty program.
Nevertheless, users are strongly advised to exercise caution and diligently assess their risk tolerance and investment objectives before embarking on loans. It is crucial to recognize that investments in loans inherently carry risks, and the value of NFTs can be exceedingly volatile.
by Fintech Express | May 9, 2023 | Blockchain
Binance has announced that it will enable the trading of Bitcoin Ordinals NFTs in its marketplace via a recent announcement. It has stated that it will allow investors to trade their Ordinals NFTs using the already existing wallets. This news comes when the total number of generated Ordinals hits over 5M.
Binance NFT Marketplace to allow the trading of BTC Ordinals
Bitcoin Ordinals NFTs have been a hot topic in the crypto space this year, and by now, 5M inscriptions have been hosted on the network. By now, they have been supported by major NFT exchanges like Magic Eden.
On May 9, 2023, Binance announced it would support Bitcoin Ordinals on its NFT Marketplace in May. The NFT Marketplace will now expand its NFT ecosystem to offer Bitcoin products. Previously, the marketplace integrated with decentralized networks like BNB Chain, Ethereum, and Polygon.
Keep watching FinTech Express for updates on this and other Finance related stories.
by Samuel Mbaki | May 3, 2023 | Blockchain
Solana finally revealed the SAGA phone in Mid-April after being waited for by crypto enthusiasts for long. The device is designed to be seamless in making transactions and will allow customers from select regions to order it beginning May 8
First Web 3 smartphone?
Solana has introduced the SAGA smartphone to the world, with customers from the U.S., E.U., U.K., Canada, Switzerland, Australia, and New Zealand to be allowed to order it beginning May 8.
The device retails at $1000 and runs on Android software. Since Google and Apple stores enforce strict regulations around their payment systems, which affects many Web 3 applications, Solana decided to step in to prevent compromises being made by the applications, which may, in turn, inhibit the full potential of the Web 3 solutions.
One example of the inhibition affecting Web 3 applications is the Uniswap app. This application was stuck in the Apple Store publishing process for over a month to ‘comply’ with the set standards. Now, Solana’s SAGA steps in here. It will have a separate app store designed to allow for the publishing of Web 3 applications without much struggle.
Is Solana giving Web 3 enthusiasts crypto’s smart security tech?
Yes, they are going to get a taste of their tech. The phone is packed with multiple security protocols and solutions employed in the crypto industry. Once users acquire their Solana Saga Phone, they will be prompted to connect their Web3 wallets or create a new one integrated into the device.
The selected wallet will then be used to conduct the transactions securely. The inbuilt wallet is secured in a separate layer from the Android operating system. The phone also has an element processor, meaning that the wallet is encrypted, so the device administration systems cannot decrypt it without the owner’s engagement.
The mobile device will feature 16 Dapps ready for downloading from the Solana App Store during the first launch phase. These apps include Audius, Dialect, Jupiter Aggregator, Ledger, Magic Eden, Marinade, Squads, and others.
The phone will also allow its buyers to claim a SAGA NFT token once they are done setting it up. The first few users will also receive a welcome package featuring crypto assets and sticker packs. Keep watching Fintech Express for updates on the progress of the SAGA phone in the markets and other Web 3-related stories.
by Fintech Express | May 3, 2023 | Blockchain
Solve.Care, a Web 3 health services company, has tapped into the expertise of OMRON Healthcare to integrate it with its systems. OMRON offers blood pressure monitoring and cardiovascular disease management solution.
Now, OMRON’s devices can send and receive data directly from Solve.Care platform. The Web 3 solutions provider said the measurement data will be stored directly in its decentralized user data nodes via OMRON’s Evolv® BP7000 Blood Pressure Monitor.
In a press release, the company said that Evolve by OMRON will allow users of its platform to share their readings peer-to-peer with health services providers or within their Care.Circle. Care.Circle is a personalized healthcare support group comprising family and friends or other care providers.
The press release explained that the integration of OMRON devices is part of Solve.Care’s strategy of creating an entire healthcare ecosystem for patients, physicians, and all healthcare stakeholders.
“We admire OMRON Healthcare’s goal for developing life-saving cardiovascular health technologies and sharing a like-minded vision of enabling consumers to access their real-time healthcare data,” said Pradeep Goel, CEO of Solve.Care.
“While accelerating the expansion of OMRON devices to reach more consumers and new markets, we are creating a more holistic approach to healthcare on the Solve.Care platform. We’re thrilled to integrate our innovative Care.Wallet technology with one of the most reputable blood pressure devices worldwide.”
Pradeep Goel, CEO of Solve.Care.
The deal between OMRON and Solve.Care is expected to impact many people as OMRON is the world’s largest blood pressure monitoring device manufacturer, with over 300 sold units. It will also make Solve.Care an authorized reseller of its devices which will harmonize their joint efforts further. Keep watching Fintech Express for updates on Web 3 and other Fintech-related stories.
by Samuel Mbaki | Apr 3, 2023 | Blockchain
Solve.Care, a well-known Web 3 health services provider, has taken a step forward by introducing a new Layer 2 blockchain (Care.Chain). The organization revealed that the new blockchain would help advance its mission to improve healthcare access, delivery, management, and payment while benefiting consumers and health institutions.
Introducing Care.Chain, a decentralized layer 2 healthcare-oriented blockchain network
Solve.Care has confirmed the launch of Care.Chain, its L2 blockchain optimized to solve specific challenges prevalent in the healthcare industry. Some of the challenges that the network seeks to improve include patient access to health data, the rising cost of running administrative processes, trust and compliance issues, and the provision of proof of competence, such as healthcare licensing and certification.
Care.Chain will also come with new healthcare computing primitives via introducing ZK (Zero Knowledge) verifiable runtime for events. This solution will allow for several other use cases beyond basic distributed ledger technology. It will also provide out-of-the-box support for waller-based apps introducing peer-to-peer communications and processing business deals.
According to the official announcement by Solve.Care, the chain will also combine the power of Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) and verified credentials-based event stream processing to build a unique Healthcare Event Virtual Machine. It added that the network would allow for the development of dApps (decentralized applications) like NFTs and Peer to peer communications between healthcare roles.
As such, the network will support direct communications between two key parties without needing a moderator/ third party. That will increase data security as only the involved parties will know about any healthcare event. Additionally, the network will have a native token like most L2 networks. Its token will be called SOLVE. Keep watching FintechExpress for updates on this and other Web 3-related developments.
