Connect with us

Cryptocurrency

NFTs Are The Future of Art – But How to Spot The Fakes as Demand Soars?

Published

on

NFTs- Investors King

NFT technology is helping to make art profitable again, but plagiarism and fakes are “becoming a massive issue” for both artists and buyers, warns a world-famous British artist who has crossed over into the digital space.

The warning from Adrian Chesterman, who has worked with the likes of Steven Spielberg, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Chris Rea, comes as evidence shows that there are a record number of fake NFTs in the marketplace.

An NFT (non-fungible token) is a digital asset that can be an image, audio clip, or GIF and whose ownership is recorded on a tamper-proof digital ledger known as a blockchain.

Over the last year, the NFTs market has exploded, with a digital-only piece of art selling for $69 million in 2021.

Since then, an ever-growing number of artists and celebrities, and fashion, music, tech and sports brands have been creating, buying and selling ‘tokens.’

Chesterman says: “Since the explosion of NFTs last year, plagiarism and fakes have been an increasing problem.

“This is attributable to two main reasons. First, demand is soaring globally for NFTs and therefore there are simply a lot more people in the market – both collectors and artists.

“Second, some of the major NFT platforms are not fit for purpose because users can list NFTs without adding them on the blockchain and they don’t pay fees until they sell. Vetting systems need to be more robust.”

Against this backdrop, how does Chesterman, who has just released a contemporary version of his Chris Rea’s Road to Hell album, says there are ways collectors can buy NFTs – “the future of art” – without being caught out by scammers.

“First off, the rule of thumb is: If the deal seems too good to be true, that’s because it probably is. Prices of NFTs are based on supply and demand. If an NFT is priced significantly cheaper or more expensive than similar NFTs from the same collection or category, it may be a fake.

“Check the authenticity of the NFT by doing a reverse Google image search. In addition, the platform can verify collections and their artists. Typically, a blue checkmark will appear by its title if it’s the real deal.

“Ultimately, the best way to ensure your NFT is genuine is to choose the right platform, perhaps one with human moderators is best.”

Despite the issues, the globally renowned artist Adrian Chesterman is determined to continue in the NFT space. Why?

“NFTs are the future of art, without question. We’re increasingly living digital lives and NFTs allow us to take the images we love into this world – with an even further enhanced experience for the buyer. It’s the inevitable way forward.

“In addition, it’s good for an artist’s profitability. They can prove if their works are counterfeited, and they can include criteria to get royalties every time their works are re-sold in the future.”

International art dealer, Stephen Howes, of Thomas Crown Art, who represents Adrian Chesterman, agrees: “NFTs are an emerging marketplace, but one which represents the future, for sure.

“It allows artists to make some money and exercise control over their work, to sell it more easily, reach a global audience, to more strongly protect against others appropriating it without permission, and sidestep the traditional biases of the ‘art industry mafia’.”

Chesterman’s most recent work appeals to this future-focused buying audience.

“As the illustrator of the original Road To Hell album cover, I’ve now produced a contemporary version of the concept of hell more relevant to the state of the world today.

“In 2022, we’re only too conscious of the modern-day version of hell we have created for ourselves. So the medieval cliches of tortured souls in eternal fire and demons with pitchforks have now been replaced by images of pollution of the world’s oceans, the ongoing nuclear threat and air pollution.”

He concludes: “The NFTs market is booming. It’s an exciting time – and right now there’s a certain degree of ‘early adoption advantage’ for serious buyers.”

Continue Reading
Comments

Bitcoin

Bitcoin Holds Above $67,000 Amid Trump Win Bets

Published

on

bitcoin to Nigerian Naira - Investors King

Bitcoin is holding above $67,000 after yesterday’s correction after breaching the $69,000 level and rising to its highest level since late July.

Yesterday’s correction comes after an upward trend that investors are pushing to continue in light of a set of supporting factors, whether from the massive inflows into cryptoinvestment products or from more bets on Donald Trump winning the White House again.

Cryptocurrency investment products recorded massive inflows last week, reaching $2.2 billion, which represents the highest level since last July, with Bitcoin accounting for most of these flows that went to US spot ETFs, according to CoinShares. Net flows to these funds amounted to more than $294 million yesterday alone, according to SoSo Value.

This comes with two weeks left until the US presidential election. While the Polymarket betting market indicates that Republican candidate Trump is likely to win with a 63% probability, the betting site has sparked controversy over who is behind the significant increase in Trump bets. In contrast to Polymarket’s results, the poll average indicates that Democratic candidate Kamala Harris is ahead by 48.2% compared to 46.4% for Trump, according to FiveThirtyEight.

While this disparity and fluctuation in polls and predictions is likely to keep cryptocurrencies vulnerable to sharp volatility in the coming days, as the identity of the winner of the White House presidency might shape the future of the industry.

However, the futures market is presenting a mixed story and is questioning the sustainability of Bitcoin’s bullish trend. Bitcoin futures open interest regained its record level of more than $40 billion yesterday, according to CoinGlass, despite the price correction. This correction only resulted in a very small liquidation of the long positions of about $28 million yesterday.

Of that $40 billion, $12.5 billion was on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), which also represents a new record high for Bitcoin futures on the US’s largest futures exchange. This reflects the increasing involvement of institutional investors in driving price action.

What is concerning is the decline in the long/short ratio from 1.04 on Sunday to 0.94 today, which may reflect increasing bearish bets in futures market, which in turn may indicate a possible reversal of the bullish trend and a renewal of yesterday’s losses soon.

Written by Samer Hasn, Senior Market Analyst at XS

Continue Reading

Cryptocurrency

Binance Expands Crypto Access in West and Central Africa With Mobile Money Integration

Published

on

Binance - Investors King

Binance, the world’s leading blockchain and cryptocurrency infrastructure provider continues to drive innovation and expand access to cryptocurrency in Africa, now allowing users in Benin, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Togo and Senegal to purchase crypto directly through mobile money payments enabled through local partnerships. 

This new functionality further strengthens Binance’s commitment to providing simple and secure access to cryptocurrency for users across the continent, reinforcing the platform’s vision of financial inclusion.

Samantha Fuller, Spokeswoman for Binance says “We remain focused on advancing financial inclusion and delivering user-friendly solutions for crypto adoption across Africa. This expansion into West and Central Africa is a significant step in our mission to increase crypto adoption, providing millions of people with more direct access to the global digital economy”.

This new service currently supports only BUY transactions, further simplifying the entry point for new crypto users in these regions, while providing them with a reliable and secure platform to acquire digital assets.

How to buy crypto:

  1. Log in to your Binance app and select [Add Funds] from the homepage.
  2. Choose your local fiat currency you wish to use by selecting the currency in the top-right column.
  3. Follow the instructions to complete your crypto purchase.

Continue Reading

Bitcoin

Bitcoin Fails to Hold $63,000 Amid Weak Risk Appetite, Growing Selling Pressure

Published

on

bitcoin to Nigerian Naira - Investors King

Bitcoin remains below $63,000 after failing to hold above it over the past two days while Ethereum is also struggling to reclaim $2,440.

The crypto market has been trading sideways since the beginning of this week.

The cautious moves in the crypto market come amid uncertainty over a range of economic and political factors in the US and geopolitics in the Middle East.

Add to that the potential selling pressure that the US government may exert with its permission to sell around 70,000 Bitcoin.

The Supreme Court has allowed the US Marshals Service to proceed with the sale of 69,370 Bitcoins seized from the Silk Road online store, which would be the largest sale of its kind in history. While the nature and pace of this selling is not yet known, it will not necessarily put downward pressure on prices if it is done in over-the-counter (OTC)
transactions, according to Beincrypto.

As for the economic side, in light of the surprise labor market numbers that were much better than expected and Jerome Powell’s hawkish speech, hopes for a rapid continuation of interest rate cuts this year have diminished. While the relatively high rates remain for a longer period and the continued rise in Treasury bond yields will weaken appetite for risky assets in general, including cryptocurrencies.

Whereas, after the hypothesis of a half-percentage point cut at the next November meeting was the most likely, it has now become excluded in the Fed Fund futures market, and the probability of a quarter-percentage point cut has become 87%, according to the CME FedWatch Tool. The remaining 13% is for the possibility of keeping current rates unchanged.

The state of caution may also prevail in the markets in the coming weeks, as we anticipate the presidential elections in the United States, which will begin next month. While the outcome of these elections could cause a structural shift in the crypto industry.

Far away, in the Middle East, markets are still anticipating the nature of the expected escalation in the region, especially regarding the nature of the Israeli response to the unprecedented attack from Iran and the nature of the counter-response. While one of the most prominent scenarios is targeting energy facilities, which would bring inflation back to the forefront, which in turn may require central banks to keep interest rates high.

 

Continue Reading

Trending