NFTs on Bitcoin — next level or just another project?
Ever heard of minting, trading and collecting NFTs on Bitcoin? Sounds like a lot of potential to you? Then you need to read this.
Surely NFTs are being minted, traded and collected on many blockchains already. Ethereum, Wave, Wax, dozens of layer 2 solutions — so it is not big news if there is a new network capable of doing NFTs. UNLESS it is actually doing NFTs on Bitcoin. Right?
As of being by far the most important crypto on the planet with the biggest community and global awareness as well as willingness to invest, the possibility to do NFTs on BTC is a big thing. The way to do this is via Stacks, the blockchain that brings smart contracts to Bitcoin.
NFTs on Stacks — the smart contract platform secured on Bitcoin
Doing my research, Stacks with its capabilities already is a platform to clearly take a closer look on — if you haven’t done so already. As of now just recently the possibilities to easily mint and trade NFTs on Stacks, have made this imo even more interesting. We all know that NFTs (non fungible tokens) are one of the major trends in crypto right now. Millions are being made by artists minting and selling NFTs, and by traders and collectors buying, hodling and selling them.
But amongst all of the NFT projects out there right now, I think NFTs on Stacks definitely stand out. As for now there is no other platform that make NFTs secured on Bitcoin possible. And the best thing: It is an easy thing to do as Stacks transaction costs are very low and speeds rather fast.
This is how Stacks links your NFTs with Bitcoin
The way this works is super interesting. Stacks is a 3rd generation Layer 1 Blockchain with smart contract capabilities. Via its proof/of/transfer consensus mechanism it is linked to Bitcoin. In fact a bulk of thousands of stacks transactions are being linked to a single hash on a Bitcoin Block. You could say, this in a very clever way Stacks actually brings smart contracts (or NFTs) to Bitcoin.
So, if you are minting NFTs via Stacks smart contracts, as soon as that transaction is confirmed on a Bitcoin Block, your NFT is confirmed on Bitcoin forever. And now there is an easy way to do that.
Boom Wallet
If you are familiar with Stacks you might know that a quite vivid ecosystem has evolved since its launch in 2019. One of the most promising projects is boom.money, a Stacks wallet released by RubRiot. In fact it is not just a simple wallet. It is actually a wallet capable of minting and trading NFTs on Stacks/Bitcoin.
The minting process is reportedly very easy — I will try to mint a Bitcoin NFT soon by myself, let’s see how that turns out, keep you updated on that.
Boomboxes — NTFs that earn STX for you
Of course, NFTs on any smart contracts platform can also have utility. The capabilities of this are unlimited / on any platform. But Boom Wallet showed a great example of how to build something exceptional. With Boomboxes they have connected 2 of the great functions of Stacks (and other comparable defi services): Smart Contracts and a mechanism called “stacking”, which actually earns crypto to hodlers.
Owners of NFTs called Boomboxes can actually lock up STX into them, which will earn them stacking rewards. So, this is in fact an NFT that earns you money just by hodling. Nice :)
You can find all the details on Boomboxes here
Examples of NFTs on Stacks
Other than Boomboxes there have already been mintet many NFTs on Bitcoin. Check out some examples tweeted here:
So, overall I think this is a great example of how great the capabilities of Stacks are. NFTs are a big thing and minting them on Bitcoin kind of turns this next level.
What do you think:
Are NFTs on Bitcoin a great new option that make a difference?
Or do you see this as just the next project like many others?
Quite curious about your opinion.
About me:
I am a writer, blogger and music producer with a great interest in cryptos and the blockchain industry. As a Freehold member I will publish regularly about the Stacks ecosystem. Watch out for other upcoming projects around cryptos :) Expect a big fresh release in may.
(This article I originally published on voice.com — republishing here because voice.com went private…)