Before you proceed, please review and accept the Terms & Conditions:

Accredited Investor Acknowledgement
Please read this page before proceeding, as it explains certain restrictions imposed by law on the distribution of this information. It’s your responsibility to be aware of and to observe all applicable laws and regulations of any relevant jurisdiction. By clicking to access this content you confirm that you have read and accepted the terms of this important information, you also: 1) Agree that all access to this website by you will be subject to the disclaimers, risk warnings, and conditions provided herein. 2) Agree that you are an Accredited Investor.

An Accredited Investor generally includes: A) Individuals with income over $200K annually (or $300K with a spouse/partner), or with a net worth over $1M (excluding a primary residence). B) Certain licensed professionals (Series 7, 65, or 82). C) Banks, insurance companies, registered funds, investment advisers, or other regulated financial institutions. D) Trusts, corporations, partnerships, nonprofits, family offices, or other entities with over $5M in assets, or entities owned entirely by accredited investors. If you are uncertain whether you qualify, please consult your financial or legal adviser.

Important Notice
This information is for discussion purposes only. It is not investment, legal, or tax advice, and does not constitute an offer to buy or sell securities. Any investment decision should be based solely on the official offering documents and after consultation with your own professional advisers.

You are leaving funds.galaxy.com

You are leaving the Galaxy Asset Management site and are being directed to an external third-party website that we think might be of interest to you. Third-party websites are not under the control of Galaxy, and we are not responsible for the contents or the proper operation of any linked site. Please note that security and privacy policies may differ from our policies, so please read third-party privacy and security policies closely. If you do not wish to continue to the third-party site, click “cancel”. The inclusion of any link does not imply our endorsement or our adoption of the statements therein and is only provided for your convenience.

Proceed
Insights / Research / What is an nft
research · July 17, 2022

What is an NFT?

Galaxy

A non-fungible token (NFT) is a unique crypto asset with its own digital fingerprint that cannot be replicated. This proves verifiable scarcity and authenticity, meaning they are not replaceable by any other NFT. In the same way that the Mona Lisa painting cannot be substituted, you cannot replicate an NFT. Think of it this way - one bitcoin token is worth the same as another bitcoin token, and theoretically, you could trade bitcoin tokens with a friend, preserving the value in the exchange. NFTs do not function that way. NFTs are a one-of-a-kind digital entity, whether your NFT is a drawing, music, video, or other digital creation.

Just about anything digital can be an NFT. The lack of parameters surrounding NFTs has created some confusion, but most current news centers on how the art world works with this new digital medium. For example, Christie's auction of Beeple’s EVERYDAYS: THE FIRST 5000 DAYS fetched $69M in February 2021. NFTs are revolutionizing the art marketplace allowing for code written into the piece to provide royalties to the creator each time the NFT sells. But even the NBA sells videos of major playback moments as NFTs through its online marketplace, NBA Top Shot. 

The value of owning an NFT does not come from becoming the only person who can enjoy that digital asset—others can copy the file. Instead, the value comes from specifically owning the work. The blockchain history of the purchase serves as a guarantee of authenticity for the owner. Simply put, many people may have a Mona Lisa poster, but there is only one authentic painting. Hopefully, it’s yours.

NFTs are also gaining popularity in the worlds of VR, AR, and tokenization of video game assets. They can also be used for ticketing services, or access passes to places online (buildings within metaverses, private discord servers, etc.) Apart from entertainment mediums, NFTs solve a few additional functions:

  1. Ownership of something online that is inherently unique

  2. A key or ticket to something

  3. A digital asset with highly specific parameters, such as LP tokens for Uniswap or highly customizable derivative product


More Like This

Galaxy
research · October 06, 2025

The Investable Universe 2.0: Institutional Adoption in Motion

Crypto 101
Funds
Markets & Macro
Galaxy
research · December 06, 2023

Galaxy's Digital Assets Academy

Crypto 101
Galaxy
research · August 05, 2022

How are Cryptocurrencies Correlated?

Crypto 101
Cryptocurrency
Galaxy
research · August 04, 2022

What is Yield Farming?

Crypto 101
DeFi