India’s NFT space is growing almost as fast as cryptocurrencies did

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India’s NFT space is growing almost as fast as cryptocurrencies did
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  • The country has seen three new NFT marketplaces emerge in less than two months.
  • Some NFT marketplaces in India have brought down gas fees to $1.
  • Artists and creators in India are using NFTs to get away from traditional market barriers.
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The NFT trend is picking up in India almost as fast as the country’s cryptocurrency industry did. As crypto exchanges use the bear market to focus on other aspects of their businesses, the country has seen three new marketplaces for selling non-fungible tokens (NFTs) come up in less than two months.

On July 17, Twitter said conversations around NFTs are also growing in India. The company said volume of conversations around these crypto tokens have grown by 43% between April and June this year.

NFTs are digital tokens that can be used to signify the ownership of digital or physical items, by blockchain platforms. They’re the digital equivalent of land deeds, which signify the ownership of a piece of land.

Three new NFT marketplaces in two months



India’s top crypto exchange, WazirX, was the first to start in the space. It launched its NFT marketplace on June 1, but already has competition. Another NFT marketplace, called NFTically, followed suit after its seed funding round on July 20th, while a third one called Wall.app, is going to launch soon.

According to a report by Mint, artists in the country are using NFTs to break traditional industry norms. “I think it’s about time we change this notion of a starving artist and I think the NFT marketplaces, WazirX, OpenSea or other digital platforms are actually helping change that," poet Priya Malik, who sells her NFTs through WazirX, said.
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Poets, artists etc. in India have to turn to traditional exhibitions and brands to make money. But this involved going through middlemen, waiting for years at times, and often paying high commissions. YouTube was a solution for those who could showcase their art through videos, but that doesn’t work for everyone.

“I look at NFTs as an extension of that digital stage. This is where I’m going to be, for the lack of a better word, ‘minting’ money from art that I already own or can create specifically for this market," Malik told Mint.

Rethinking the NFT model



While WazirX is taking the traditional NFT route with its marketplace, NFTically and Wall are rethinking the business. NFTically doesn’t just allow users to sell through its marketplace, it also offers a software-as-a-service (SAAS) product, that allows anyone to create their own NFT marketplace too.

This is different from global platforms like OpenSea as well, since it allows artists and creators a whole new level of autonomy. While they will have to pay NFTically to gain access to its SAAS platform, they won’t have to pay commissions on the auctions that happen through the platforms they build.
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On the other hand, Wall wants to build its own social commerce platform hinged on NFTs. The company is inviting artists and creators to showcase their art and create a community of buyers and sellers, all at one place. The company is planning to launch sometime in this quarter.

According to a report by the Economic Times, WazirX had sold over 160 pieces of digital art a mere month after launching its NFT marketplace. Platforms in India are also bringing down the gas fee, which is required for minting NFTs, which might give them global relevance too.

Platforms like OpenSea require between $100-150 in gas fees for listing a single NFT. On the other hand, WazirX has brought this amount down to $1 by using the Binance Smart Chain, while NFTically is using the Polygon platform to offer similar results.

For a more in-depth discussion, come on over to Business Insider Cryptosphere — a forum where users can deep dive into all things crypto, engage in interesting discussions and stay ahead of the curve.

SEE ALSO:
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