If you're keeping tabs on the art and tech worlds, you've probably been hearing whispers about "NFTs" for the past month. Just over the past week they've entered the mainstream lexicon.
Twitter founder Jack Dorsey made the news for selling his first ever tweet. The app has been teasing paid subscription models and newsletter-like features, but tweets for sale is "the next frontier."
just setting up my twttr— jack (@jack) 1142974214.0
The 2006 tweet went up for auction as an NFT, and the current bid is $2.5 Million. But what does it mean to own that? Why would anyone want to? And what even is an NFT?
What does NFT stand for?
NFT stands for "non-fungible token." Essentially, it's like a proof of ownership sticker for something that exists on the internet. The NFT is a piece of code that acts like a watermark or a signature — if you own an NFT, you own the rights to that little piece of the internet. Because ownership is embedded into unique code on a blockchain, NFTs are impossible to make fakes of or replicate. The digital asset can be screenshotted or replicated, but the ownership cannot.
An NFT is different from a "fungible token," like a Bitcoin. The main distinction is that fungible tokens are interchangeable. They each have a 1:1 value with each other, but NFTs do not. So while one Bitcoin has the same exact value as another, an NFT of a random Popdust tweet does not have the same value of Jack Dorsey's inaugural tweet.
Talk of NFTs is often intertwined with cryptocurrency jargon, but they are not only the realm of Bitcoin bros. Unlike other forms of cryptocurrency, you don't need to know the specific ins and outs of the market in order to purchase an NFT — making NFTs accessible to those of us who have yet to hop onto Bitcoin, Ethereum, or even Dogecoin.
What Can Be an NFT?
Any digital asset can become an NFT. From a tweet to a gif to digital art, anything that exists on the internet can now be officially owned. NFTs have been around for a while, but only recently have they taken off as a way for digital creators to sell "official" versions of their content.
Anyone can screenshot a tweet or repost an Instagram meme, but NFTs allow consumers to own the rights to trade, sell, or keep and collect them. While digital art and internet ephemera are most ubiquitous as NFTs, the market is growing for more traditional collection fodder to be sold in this new format.
Digital art is now being sold like fine art, and baseball cards are no longer the realm of middle school lunch tables. As the market grows, so does the scale. While an NFT gif can go for around $5,000, recent digital sales have been making headlines for reaching millions and tens of millions.
"Everydays - The First 5000 Days" by Beeple was sold by Christie's as an NFT for $69M
Why Are People Talking About Them?
While Dorsey is not the first to rack up millions for selling digital ephemera, his tweet auction has propelled the market into the headlines. The hype surrounding the NFT market is similar to the recent astronomical trajectory of cryptocurrency and has even been compared to the GameStop saga.
In one way, NFTs are similar to investments like fine art and rare collectibles. And the traditional auction world is taking notice. Digital artist Beeple, who has been creating Everydays for 13 years and amassed millions of social media followers, is finally getting payout for the work he has been doing for free. Internationally renowned auction house Christie's launched its first ever digital-only auction with a Beeple NFT.
It sold for $69 Million.
While the astronomical prices may be driven by hype, the future of NFTs is becoming undeniable.
What's the Future of NFTs?
NFTs are changing the way artists and digital creators interact with followers and get paid. Soon we'll be seeing branded NFTs collected like Jordans or even NFTs to replace tour merch. Music NFTs are already making waves, too.
They're also changing the way we think about investing. Instead of investing in the stock market or in the traditional collectibles, internet fodder can now appreciate in value. And because so many NFT platforms serve crypto users, investors can watch the value of their items and their crypto rise separately to compound their earnings.
However, the unregulated world of NFTs is rising without anyone keeping vigilant watch. The murky waters of internet ownership that NFTs ostensibly solve get muddied when people are stealing art to turn into NFTs in the first place.
And while NFTs are purportedly decentralizing and democratizing art dealing and trading, the reality seems like the people benefitting are already rich and looking to get richer.
Long gone are the days when the majority of Americans dreamed about owning a home with a white picket fence.
The traditional American Dream may be on its deathbed, but that doesn't mean a core component of the vision can't survive. It simply takes a diverse perspective. People can still believe they can attain their own vision of success in society with hard work, knowledge, and risk-taking. Investing in today's American Dream may literally mean investing money in our modern economy, starting with our infrastructure.
Real estate investing in particular is a lucrative method that can boost income and secure a better financial future for many. There's always risk involved, but the payoffs can far outweigh the uncertainty. Selecting solid financial investments is about confidence and competence. If you're looking for some advice on this kind of investment, here are a few savvy tips for new real estate investors.
Stick To a Specific Strategy or Niche
Real estate is a challenging sphere of the business world, one that requires several key skills: groundwork knowledge, networking, perseverance, and organization. True knowledge of the real estate market will come with time and experience, but it's a smart idea to select one area of the market and stick to it. This is the best way to attain in-depth familiarity with your specific niche.
First, choose a geographical area close by and then a niche strategy within it, such as house flips, rental rehabs, or residential or commercial properties. By doing so, you can become aware of current inner working conditions in the market and you'll have a better idea of how these trends may change in the future.
Be Vigilant About Viable Financing Options
While it takes money to make money, you don't have to use all your own money. A common misconception about real estate investing is that you must be wealthy to start off. This isn't straight fact, however. A majority of people can test the waters of real estate investing without a lot of initial cash in their pocket.
Aside from traditional financing options from banks and institutions, private lending options can be worthy solutions. Hard money lenders are popular, reasonable choices, and they tend to have fewer qualification requirements upfront. However, be sure to strategically choose a hard money lender to find the best possible fit.
Master the Art of Finding Good Deals
There may be hundreds of thousands of available properties for sale on the current market, but the bulk of them will never amount to the final money-making result you desire. Another great tip for new real estate investors is to use good math to estimate profit. Taking risks is part of the process, but you have the ability to analyze properties and use networking sources to find the greatest deal. You can't win every deal, but you can steadily work towards a thriving financial future.
Boeing's 737 MAX is to take to the skies once more after the go-ahead from the FAA, fueling the stock's rise.
Shares of Boeing (BA) have continued to climb this month, rising over 33% from their October 30th closing of $144.39, and have continued to climb this week.
There are a few key events contributing to this rapid rise in the stock:
1. October's quarterly report unveiled further job cuts, for the airline as well as a smaller-than-expected loss. Losses were $1.39 a share, beating out expected losses of $2.47 a share. Headcount will also shrink by 11,000. Even in one of the worst markets for travel stocks in decades, investors appear to be confident in the company's long-term prospects.
2. With multiple COVID-19 vaccine trials reporting positive results, investors are starting to eye a post-coronavirus world where pent-up demand for travel will see millions taking to the skies. With Boeing still the market-leader in US commercial aircraft, expect that demand to trickle down to the airplane manufacturer's bottom line.
3. With the FAA clearing the 737 MAX to fly after two fatal crashes, the plane is expected to become a hot commodity once more. The planes have been grounded for 20 months while Boeing made changes to software, design, and training to reassure customers, and airlines are eager to get them flying once more.
The 737 MAX has a longer range and burns 14% less fuel than Boeing's previous 737 NG, making it a strong choice for airlines' long-distance and trans-continental routes. Alaska Airlines and Ryanair are both expected to take MAX deliveries in a matter of months and US passengers could be prepared to fly in already-delivered planes as early as late December.
That's not to say Boeing's rapid rise will continue. These vaccines are still awaiting FDA approval and the 737 Max still needs clearance from air safety regulators internationally including Transport Canada, Civil Aviation Administration of China, and the European Aviation Safety Agency.
Meanwhile, it may be an uphill battle for passengers to board a plane again after COVID-19, not the least on an airplane model that dominated the headlines following the crashes of Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302.
Positive news in the last month has allowed Boeing's stock to soar. The real question is how long will it stay up?
Tesla's ups and downs have been a roller coaster for investors over the last few years, but Monday's announcement that the company will be added to the S&P 500 should grab everyone's attention.
Tesla met the criteria to join the exclusive club representing some of the most valuable public companies in the US back in September. Despite the delayed addition, the S&P Selection Committee will include the company in the benchmark index starting Monday, December 21st.
There is currently over $11 trillion in assets benchmarked to the S&P 500, including $4.6 trillion in indexed funds. With Tesla's addition, these funds will have to buy Tesla stock and include it in their portfolios. Passive funds are expected to purchase around 95 million shares while active fund managers will need to purchase 30 million on top of that. That's over $50 billion dollars flowing into Tesla stock as portfolios are rebalanced.
If you've been holding onto Tesla stock, this is great news for you as there is going to be much more demand from institutional investors forced to buy the stock. If you've been looking for the right time to sell, you're going to have a lot of eager buyers this December. The stock's jump in price after the announcement is a testament to how much value the increased demand is expected to create.
Reuters
Even if you don't hold any Tesla stock, this will affect you too. Tesla is going to be one of the largest companies ever added to the index, and that $50 billion dollars is going to have to come from somewhere. All those investment funds indexed to the S&P 500 need to sell shares of other companies in order to buy Tesla to ensure their portfolios reflect the car company's portion of the index. This trade is expected to be so large that the S&P Dow Jones Indices is soliciting feedback as to whether Tesla should be added all at once or in two tranches to give investors more time to balance portfolios.
If you are invested in a fund that tracks the S&P, you might be excited that you are finally going to get a piece of some of the action. Come December 21st, many investors who have kept their money index funds will find themselves owning Tesla shares. If the stock continues on its upward trajectory, this is great news. However, some investors have accused Tesla stock of being a bubble and adding it at an inflated price may open investors to losses should the share price drop in the future.
