The NFT craze sweeps the encryption world, and blockchain technology welcomes breakthrough applications.

Every year in the blockchain field, some hot keywords emerge to summarize the mainstream trends of the year. In 2017, it was ICO, which triggered a bull market; in 2019, it was IEO, becoming an opportunity for the development of exchanges; in 2020, it was DeFi, with liquidity mining attracting a lot of attention. And in 2021, the undoubtedly annual keyword is NFT.

The popularity of NFTs can be glimpsed from some examples. A limited edition pair of socks released in 2019 had an initial price of $12, and this year it has been speculated to $160,000. A rainbow cat GIF meme from ten years ago was made into an NFT and auctioned for $580,000. The first tweet NFT from a founder of a social platform saw its bidding price soar to $2.5 million at one point. These events have brought NFTs into the public eye.

NBA Top Shot is a highly regarded NFT project where users can purchase NFT packs of NBA players' highlight moments. Among them, the NFT card featuring James's dunk over an opponent fetched a high price of $208,000. According to data platforms, the NFT market's trading volume exceeded $340 million this February, setting a new monthly record, with NBA Top Shot accounting for the largest share, trading over $225 million.

The popularity of NFTs has expanded from the cryptocurrency sphere to multiple fields such as sports, art, and gaming. The search popularity first surpassed DeFi on February 21, and on March 2, it first exceeded ETH. The explosion of NFTs has unexpectedly brought Blockchain technology out of the crypto circle, attracting broader attention.

The reasons why NFTs can attract the interest of people outside the circle are mainly the following:

1. NFTs are easier to understand compared to the abstract and complex concept of Blockchain, allowing ordinary people to easily participate in collecting NBA player cards and other content of interest.

2. NFTs have broadened the channels for wealth acquisition and have a wealth aggregation effect. Creators such as artists can easily turn their works into NFTs and sell them to fans.

3. The cryptocurrency bull market has allowed investors to profit, with more funds flowing into the NFT market.

4. During the pandemic, people were stuck at home and developed more interest in NFTs.

5. The celebrity effect promotes further popularity of NFTs.

As people's lifestyles become increasingly digital, the ownership of digital assets represented by NFTs will become more important. Ordinary investors can participate by investing in NFT concept tokens or by directly purchasing NFT products. However, it should be noted that the liquidity of NFT products is relatively low, so when investing, one should choose well-known and widely recognized major IP works.

NFT provides new monetization channels for creators such as musicians and artists, and also gives ordinary people the opportunity to have partial ownership of high-value artworks like famous paintings. It realizes the divisible and certifiable trading of physical items, bringing a brand new experience to humanity. Although there are still controversies, NFT undoubtedly represents an emerging trend, and its future development is worth looking forward to.