Infrastructure

NFT (Non-Fungible Token)

A blockchain token that represents ownership of a unique item, where no two units are interchangeable.

A non-fungible token is a one-of-a-kind record on a blockchain. Bitcoin is fungible, one coin equals any other. An NFT is not: each carries a unique ID that lets it represent a specific item, art, a collectible, a domain, or a ticket.

Most NFTs live on Ethereum under the ERC-721 standard. The token proves ownership on-chain, though the image itself usually sits elsewhere, sometimes decentralized storage, sometimes a regular server.

Prices can be brutal. The 2021 boom faded hard, and many collections now trade for a fraction of mint price, or barely trade at all.

Related terms