NFT Investments, a new startup launched by Argo Blockchain founders, plans to bring non-fungible tokens to market in London IPO
In the latest sign of the investment craze for so-called non-fungible tokens (NFT), crypto-mining service provider Argo Blockchain announced Thursday plans for its new company, NFT Investments, for an IPO on the niche Aquis Stock Exchange Global Market in London.
NFT Investment was founded by the co-founders of cryptocurrency firm Argo Blockchain, Jonathan Bixby and Mike Edwards. The founders said on Thursday they intend to raise around $13.77 million (10 million pounds).
Argo Blockchain is the first crypto-mining service company to gain admission to the main market of the London Stock Exchange through a standard listing. Based in the UK, Argo Blockchain operates a global data center providing a low-cost and consumer-friendly service for the mining of leading crypto-currencies.
NFTs are crypto assets with digital signatures saved on blockchain ledgers that allow someone to verify the ownership and authenticity of items. NFT enables collectors to authenticate, own and trade original, authenticated versions of unique digital goods using blockchain technology.
NFT artworks became mainstream about three weeks ago when Christie’s Auction sold digital artist Beeple’s NFT for a record-setting $69.3 million, making it the most expensive digital art ever sold.
Tech investors have also taken notice. Venture capitalists are writing big checks for tech startups in the booming NFT space. In 2020, the total investments in NFT startups quadrupled to $250 million, according to data from Nonfungible.com, while in the past month alone overall NFT sales volumes exceeded $220 million.
However, skeptics are warning NFTs could be another bubble waiting to burst. Time will tell.